Aisubeki: Lovable
by Lady MacFluff - Yaoi Queen
Summary: SasuNaruness. Naruto gets adopted into the Uchiha family when he is just six years old. As Naruto and Sasuke grow up together, will they become more than just family?
1. Chapter 1 : Good Night

Chapter 1 : Good Night

I don't own Naruto.

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"Itachi-nii…"

A raven-haired teen stopped in his tracks, his hand on the door. He let out a sigh and the boy hiding around the corner smiled. The sigh was their language. It meant that he was considering if the younger boy could come along.

"Ano sa…" The young boy looked at the ground and then fidgeted with his hands. Itachi had to smile. His little brother was wearing slightly traditional Uchiha clothes, probably persuaded by their mother; Blue shorts that were just above his knee and a khaki shirt with a slit on the collar, held together by string. The Uchiha emblem adorned his back.

"Kaa-san did that?" He smirked.

"Oto-san." Sasuke corrected. He looked up at his brother, begging with his eyes to be taken away from that place where their parents wanted to use him as a dress up doll.

"Kaa-san wants to find out if my festival clothes fit. I know they do, so please…" He trailed off. Itachi smiled at the seven-year-old boy and nodded, "Hayaku."

Sasuke beamed and slipped on a pair of sandals, quickly following his brother out the door.

"Aniki, chotto matte, kudasai." He called. Itachi paused, a little annoyed at having been told to wait, and said "Sasuke." Ignoring the annoyance in his brother's voice, Sasuke latched on firmly onto Itachi's arm, hugging it to his chest. Sasuke smiled at Itachi's sigh.

"I have to practice my shuriken exercises, so this time, please stay in the same spot."

Sasuke rubbed the back of his head and smiled, a blush adorning his face, "Gomen, aniki, But that was too cool!" The boy flailed his arms out for emphasis.

"You started school." Itachi said, "How is that going?"

Sasuke smiled and enthusiastically waved his hands, just as any kid would do, "It's a lot of fun! I do great in all my studies and people say I'm cool and stuff!" He beamed again. Itachi had to smile and asked, "Well, have you made friends?"

Sasuke's arms dropped and he said, "People tend to avoid me for some reason. The girls bug me a lot though."

Itachi let out a laugh, steering them off to the right, "What do you do then?"

Sasuke scowled, "This." Itachi pat the boy on the head, "If you do that, no wonder people avoid you."

"So have you made a friend?" He asked again. Sasuke paused and shrugged, "Not really…a friend."

"A crush then?"

Sasuke jumped up and furiously shook his head, "N-no, Aniki, I can't have a crush on a boy." He quickly dismissed it. The elder brother let out a small chuckle, "Have you tried being friends with him?"

Sasuke shook his head, "He's alone most of the time, but he's surrounded by people at the same time…does that make sense? Most people in my class avoid him. They all hate him. I don't know why though."

Itachi smiled slightly, "What do his parents say?"

Sasuke only responded, "…he walks alone most of the time…"

"Most prejudices are passed down from parents to children." Itachi began, "Maybe his parents aren't so popular. Maybe he only has one parent to take care of him." He paused and then muttered, "He might be an orphan."

Sasuke's shoulders dropped, "H-he might be…I don't know him that well…he's weird nonetheless."

"Well, does he have a name?" The elder brother asked. Sasuke nodded, "Mhm, Uzumaki. Uzumaki Naruto."

Itachi raised a brow, "Uzumaki, ka? I've never heard of that name before…must be a small family."

The two stopped talking as they arrived at the training ground. Itachi gave a sigh and then spoke, "Well, in order for you to stay out of trouble…" He placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and made a hand sign with his other hand. Both disappeared in a puff of smoke, only to reappear on a high tree branch.

"You stay here, I don't want you moving. I almost hit you last time because you didn't stay still." He then disappeared, leaving Sasuke stranded on the tree branch. The slight boy glared before he figured he might as well sit and watch, "Nii-san, you're so mean…"

He stretched, letting his legs dangle from either side of the branch. He leaned back and watched as his brother became a mere blur. Itachi had hit all the marks twice before he reappeared. Sasuke caught a small glance of his Sharingan before his brother's eyes melted into their original onyx color.

"Tell me more about your friend."

Itachi's voice made Sasuke jump. He tilted his head, confused and then he snapped his fingers, "You mean Naruto-kun?" Itachi raised a brow when Sasuke laughed, "He'd kill me if he knew I called him that."

"Indeed." Itachi rolled his eyes before going back to his practice.

"He hates me."

The simple statement caused Itachi to miss the dead center by a centimeter. He paused then looked up towards his brother, "How can you say that. He doesn't even know you."

"Everyone avoids me." Sasuke muttered before leaning back and closing his eyes. Itachi sighed and then went to retrieve his Shuriken.

Sasuke opened his eyes slightly to look up at the leaves. They rustled slightly before he whispered, "He was crying though…" It was so soft, his brother didn't hear.

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_Useless and mundane. That is what Sasuke thought of education so far and he had been in school for two whole weeks. He shuddered slightly, thinking of the pink haired girl that had started to stalk him two days into the school year._

_"Gah, she's seven, how can she be thinking about mushy stuff? Gosh, girls are so weird…" he muttered._

_"Ahahaha, you stupid moron!" Sasuke paused slightly and looked towards the playground. He saw four of his classmates as mere silhouettes against the setting sun._

_The first boy stood up from the ground and laughed loudly, boisterously. Sasuke recognized him and let himself hide behind a tree, watching the event play out._

_"Uzumaki…" He muttered as he saw the boy's laughing face. He glanced at the other three and muttered, "Inuzuka, Nara, Akimichi." The heavier boy rubbed the back of his head but followed Nara as he told them it was time to go._

_"Great time hanging with you morons, but my mom will be pissed if I'm late for dinner. She sure is weird." Akimichi lightened up at the word 'dinner' at which the other boy said, "Yeah, okay, you can come. She won't yell at me if you're around."_

_Inuzuka laughed, "All girls are weird. They're all harpin' over that Uchiha kid, like he's some prodigy. I'm betting on some girl parts inside them pants."_

_Uzumaki groaned, "Jeesh Kiba, do you need to get fixed? That's the third time today you've mentioned the inside of anyone's pants."_

_"Seriously!" The dog-boy flailed his arms, "He's such a girl! I bet he slaps like one too!"_

_"Kiba, he's got higher grades than you." Naruto rolled his eyes, "I really don't think that a kid who can throw a shuriken like that will hit like a girl." They waved goodbye to Chouji and Shikamaru._

_"He's got higher grades than you too, baka. Why you defendin' him? Don't tell me Sakura and Ino got to you…I wouldn't be surprised if Hyuuga-chan likes him too."_

_"Hinata?" Naruto, "That's the weird girl that's always blushing, right? She's weird."_

_They both laughed until a woman waved Kiba down._

_"Hey, you want me to wait with you for your parents."_

_Sasuke noticed how Naruto flinched, "Don't worry about it, just go and eat dinner, I'm bettin' you're a starvin' mutt."_

_"Eat those words, Uzumaki!" Kiba shoved the boy who caught himself before he fell._

_Sasuke followed the younger boy until he sat on the swing in front of the academy. Sasuke always noted that it was the place that he spent most of his time. He watched as the boy sat. It must have been an eternity, but Sasuke found himself standing before the boy on the swing._

_Naruto looked up, a slight tint of red under his eyes, dried tears at the corners of his eyes. They just stared at each other, transfixed by the situation._

_The Uchiha reached a hand out, not quite sure what he was going to do yet. He noticed that Naruto flinched, closing his eyes as if expecting a blow._

_Did he really think Sasuke was going to hit him?_

_Naruto's eyes snapped open as Sasuke softly patted his head. He closed them again, enjoying this new sensation of actually getting attention. It made more tears come to his eyes._

_Sasuke stepped closer, intent on asking the younger boy the cause of his distress, when Naruto leaned forward, burying his face into Sasuke's chest, clutching onto his blue shirt with the feeling that if he let go, Sasuke would vanish and he would be alone again._

_Sasuke tensed at first. Then he let himself relax, letting go of the mask he had placed the first second he walked into school. He had told himself before he didn't want to make friends. He didn't want to have something so close to him be ripped away. He had almost lost his brother on more than one occasion, and that was enough._

_Everything changed when he saw Naruto. He had wanted to befriend the boy, recognizing the mask immediately. If they both put up a mask, they must have been similar._

_Small hands gripped his shirt harder and Sasuke wrapped an arm around Naruto's shoulders, holding him in a protective embrace. He didn't notice his fingers softly combing through Naruto's hair, helping to calm the younger boy._

_It felt so right to hold the other boy, offering his comfort. He bent his neck, letting his head rest on top of Naruto's. He saw strands of his hair mix with Naruto's and he saw how different they were. He tucked his own hair behind his ear and continued to sift through Naruto's hair, taking in how soft it was. He inhaled a scent that was uniquely Naruto and he felt like he'd never want to let go._

_Who was comforting who?_

_All too soon, Naruto pulled away, using his sleeve to wipe away any evidence of his tears._

_"Go home." He said softly. Sasuke froze in his place, not understanding one bit._

_"W-what about you? You should go home too, your parents will worry." Again Naruto flinched and Sasuke understood._

_"I…I'm sorry…do…do you want me to walk you home then? It's dangerous at night and…" Sasuke trailed off, tripping over his own words._

_"It's dangerous all the time." Naruto muttered softly, "In broad daylight, there are always shadows…" Sasuke shuddered slightly, not understanding what Naruto was talking about, but just knowing it couldn't be anything good._

_"Go home, Sasuke." He repeated and stood. He started to walk away and Sasuke reached out a hand to the younger boy's back, "N…Naruto…G-good n-night." He muttered. Naruto paused slightly and then lifted a hand, "Oyasumi, Sasuke."_

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"Sasuke."

The boy opened his eyes, rubbing sleep out of them. Itachi held up his sandal and Sasuke noted that the only one left on his foot was barely on his toe.

"I…fell asleep." Sasuke stated. He moved slightly and the sandal slipped off, landing on the ground.

"Well, I was thinking that you should invite Naruto to come with us to the festival. Shisui is going to tag along with me, and I think you'll get bored with us really fast."

Sasuke stretched out and then snatched the sandal from his brother, "He won't listen to me…I just have a feeling that he won't."

Itachi picked up his brother and made a hand sign and they both appeared on the ground. The elder brother picked up the sandal and then made another hand sign. They were now in front of the Uchiha compound.

"Little brother, how high up were we?"

Sasuke thought back and responded, "Don't know, and is this really relevant?"

"Yes, now at least take a guess."

"25 meters?"

Itachi pat his head, "Good, you got that right, now as your reward go find that boy and invite him with us."

Sasuke scowled as Itachi disappeared and then muttered, "Butt-munch." Before jamming his hands in his pockets and beginning to walk.

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A/N lol, Sasuke called Itachi a butt-munch! Ha ha, Itachi is a mean older brother. Bossing his little brother around. Aww, I love cute six year old Naruto! Yes, Naruto is six and Sasuke is seven. It's in than one part of the year that they're not quite the same age. Sasuke is older! I wikapedia-ed it! That's so not a word…lol. Review Please

It's Japanese Translatin' Time!

1. –Nii is used between brothers

2. Ano sa is like 'hey' or 'um'

3. Kaa-san means 'Mom'

4. Oto-san means 'Dad'

5. Hayaku means 'hurry up'

6. Aniki, chotto matte kudasai means 'brother, wait for me, please'

7. Gomen means 'Sorry'

8. Ka is used as an article. When Itachi says "Uzumaki, ka" he is basically saying "So, his name is Uzumaki."

9. -kun is used for little boys or a masculine a term for endearment.

10. -Chan is used for little girls or a feminine term for endearment

If you find any more be sure to let me know. Ten review means new chappie! i swear, i have it all typed up and everything!

**Edit**: I didn't realize that when i imported it, that all the italics and lines got taken away. Thank you for pointing that out Alley-Oop! oh and thanks to: Konaha Uchiha, penguin, mistress0of0sin, Ryou-la-lune, Draco MalfoyGirl 16, Kayvy, and Cherry Jade for Reviewing on this chappie!


	2. Chapter 2 : I Promise, Always

Chapter 2: I promise, always

I don't own Naruto.

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The festival in Konoha came once a year. Sasuke never understood why they had a festival to honor the slaying of a demon. The sun was barely in the sky and people were bustling about, putting up the finishing touched on their booths for the festival tonight.

It was a festival that honored the Fourth Hokage. It was the day that he had sacrificed his life to kill the nine-tailed Demon fox. Sasuke sighed and glared at the world. He never liked this particular festival, because most of the veteran Ninja would cause a big commotion about demon foxes, badmouthing everything under the sun.

He was only going to stay for part of it. He heard that they were bringing in games for some of the younger children.

"Ptf…" Sasuke rolled his eyes, "This looks more like a carnival instead of festival…" He passed a sign that said 'haunted house'; it didn't look so creepy, but Sasuke thought it might look slightly better at night.

He had been walking around Konohagakure for about twenty minutes, pausing here and there to look at decorations. He then spotted Kiba walking in front of him. The Uchiha debated if he should ask Kiba if he knew where Naruto was.

Contemplating if he should ask or not, he didn't realize that Kiba had stopped walking, and he crashed into him.

"Gah, watch where you're going. Oh, it's you." Kiba rolled his eyes, "What are you doing around here?"

Sasuke immediately snapped, "Free country, I can walk where I want."

Kiba growled at him but Sasuke brushed it off. He turned to leave but then turned around and asked, "H-have you seen Na-Uzumaki?" He caught himself. Kiba shrugged, still glaring, "Go ask one of his friends."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "You're useless."

He barely had time to register that the Inuzuka had aimed a fist right for his face. It stopped mere centimeters from his face and Sasuke fell back in shock.

"Shino." Kiba growled. The other boy had grabbed his wrist. Kiba pulled his hand away and said, "Gah, I hate all you smart bastards."

With that said he turned and ran. Sasuke stood up and stared at Shino, "T-thanks…"

Shino didn't say anything, but slightly nodded his head. Sasuke raised a brow, 'This guy is so weird…'

"Uzumaki."

Sasuke's brows went up as he asked, "You know where he is?"

"He likes to eat Ramen a lot."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "How is that going to…Ichiraku's Ramen shop? A-arigatou." He nodded his head in thanks and then ran towards that direction. Shino sighed, "He is so weird."

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Sasuke walked down the streets, his shoulders sagging and his hands shoved into his pockets. Naruto wasn't anywhere in sight. He then heard Kiba again and immediately hid around the corner.

"He was looking for you, do you believe that bastard? I wanted to punch his girly face in. Such a pussy. Prolly went come to cry to his mommy about it."

"Kiba, where do you pick up such colorful language?" Asked an all-too-familiar voice.

"I live in a house full of frisky bitches, you figure it out."

"You all need to be fixed." Naruto teased.

"Whatever, bitch. Look, I suggest steering clear of Little Miss Uchiha. I really don't think he's looking for you to ask you a stupid question. He's looks like a pregnant bitch on a mission for food. And trust me, you don't wanna get in the way of a pregnant bitch and her food!"

Naruto slightly chuckled, "I wonder how mad your mom will be when she hears your language."

"She's fine with it. You should hear her mouth sometimes…I got nightmares when she explained to me how babies were made…sis had to re-explain." Naruto then laughed.

"Were you looking for me just to tell me this?"

"Mah, I just bumped into you. I'm not gonna back you up on this, loser. I'm getting the hell outta here. Seems like Shino is Sasuke's buddy, and Shino can land a mean punch. Later!" Kiba then ran away, leaving Naruto to sigh by himself. Naruto rubbed the back of his head and Sasuke appeared from out of the shadows.

"Uzumaki." He said. Naruto jumped nearly three feet in the air and then glared, "What are you trying to do, give me a heart attack? What do you want?"

Sasuke gulped, Naruto was mad and he didn't even know why. He opened his mouth to speak when Naruto cut him off, "What, you've come to make fun of me too? Probably for the other day...Go ahead; tell all of Konoha I'm a cry baby. See if I care."

Sasuke found his voice by yelling, "What is your problem, I just wanna talk!"

Both boys stared at each other. Sasuke glaring slightly at Naruto's surprised face.

"Well, what did you want to talk to me about?" He asked. Sasuke fidgeted a bit, looking to the floor.

"Well, um, I wanted to, er, know if, uh, if you, um, were going to the festival?" Sasuke stuttered out.

Naruto shook his head, "I don't do festivals. Too many crazy people. Besides, festivals are for family fun. I don't have the family part needed for family fun."

"W-well, do you wanna, I dunno, come to the festival with me…well, not just me, but me and my brother and his friend, because I was talking to my brother today and he seemed to think it was a good idea and I kind of agree with him and I know that's you're alone most of the time and…" Sasuke remotely realized he was babbling but finished his thought, "I just didn't…didn't want to see you looking so sad…"

Naruto stared at him, "Are you…serious?" Sasuke nodded. Naruto shook his head, "I don't think so, that would be intruding on your family time…"

"N-no, it wouldn't!" Sasuke took a step closer to Naruto and continued, "My parents are all busy doing stuff for the Hokage. So it's just me and my brother, which he'll probably ditch me to hang out with Shisui, a distant cousin."

"So it'll really be just you and me, I mean…if your brother is going to ditch you…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head, "Well, I don't wanna be alone and you don't wanna be alone…then why not…but I don't have any festival clothes."

Sasuke's face lit up brighter than the fireworks on the Fourth of July. "That's okay!" Sasuke said, "I'll lend you some if you want, you can come over and get ready for the festival at my house.

Naruto blushed slightly at Sasuke's enthusiasm, having not seen him like this before, "You don't act like this at school." He muttered. Sasuke looked towards the ground, "I…didn't want to make friends but…you're gonna be my friend, right?"

Naruto stared at Sasuke before he turned away, "You're crazy, we can't be friends."

Sasuke's face fell and he tugged on Naruto's sleeve, "Why not?"

Naruto turned his head to face Sasuke, his response on the tip of his tongue: Sasuke was from the upper class. He had money and brains. Naruto was poor and stupid, barely able to made Ds in his classes. He stopped. Sasuke was staring at him with sad onyx eyes.

"Because…" Naruto shook his head, "You're right…we can be friends…"

Sasuke smiled again and he pulled on Naruto's sleeve, "Come on. Let's go see my brother on the training grounds; he was practicing shuriken before…he's probably still there."

Naruto gave a slight nod, letting a small smile adorn his face.

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"Aniki!" Sasuke happily chirped. He ran around a tree and then paused. He stared at the scene before him and tilted his head. Naruto appeared behind him, and then a faint red hue appeared on Naruto's face. Sasuke's face was still blank.

"Aniki…Shisui…what are you doing?"

The two were a crumpled heap on the floor. Shisui was holding Itachi's hands behind his back as he pressed his body onto the other's.

"Just a little bit of sparring." Shisui smiled, getting off Itachi. The younger teen glared but didn't say anything.

"So, who's your friend?" Shisui asked Sasuke, crouching down.

"Uzumaki Naruto. He's coming to the festival with us." Sasuke proudly proclaimed. Shisui smiled at him and pat his head, "That's nice, you've made a friend. I hope you become good friends, like me and Itachi."

"With friends like you, who needs homicidal enemies?" Itachi nearly growled. He straightened up and then said, "Kaa-san left already. She said she left your clothes on your bed. Oto-san is at the station, I don't think he's coming back."

Sasuke nodded, "Naruto is going to borrow some of my festival clothes." He turned and dragged Naruto with him, leaving Shisui and Itachi alone.

Shisui sighed, "Cute kid." He then turned to Itachi, "so where were we?"

Itachi rolled his eyes, "You're so lucky that it was only those two. You perv."

Shisui laughed, "I know I am."

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"Here, most of the stuff I have is blue, so you'll have to bear with the color. I can guess your favorite color is orange." Naruto shook his head, "Not really…it's the only thing the shops have in stock for me…"

Sasuke blinked, "Well, can't you order it a different color?"

Naruto shook his head, "It's no big deal and I don't want to bother people anyway…"

"What's your favorite color then?" Sasuke asked, "I like blue a lot."

Naruto shrugged, "I really haven't given it much thought."

"Blue is the best color." Sasuke smiled, "Darker blues are better." He dug through his closet and pulled out some clothes.

"These clothes are a size too small for me, but they should fit you fine. My mom said the only reason that I had to get new clothes was because I gained weight." Both Sasuke and Naruto laughed and then changed.

A few minutes later and they were wearing identical clothes in shades of royal blue. The Uchiha emblem adorned each of their backs.

"It's going to start soon, so let's get going." Sasuke said. Naruto nodded and they walked into the hall, where Itachi and Shisui were waiting, "Ready?"

"Hai." Sasuke said. Itachi was wearing gray and black on his yukata. He let his hair down and it cascaded over his shoulders. Shisui had on a yukata in shades of dark red.

"That's a pretty red." Naruto commented. Shisui nodded, "It's the color of the Sharingan. It's Itachi's eye color." He smiled at Itachi who rolled his eyes. Naruto blinked, "But you're eyes are dark."

"The Uchiha blood," Sasuke explained, "Has a kekkei Genkai. The Sharingan. Not many Uchiha's have it. Itachi does though; he was my age when he got it."

Itachi waved a hand, "I'm not showing it to anyone."

"Aww, Aniki, please?" Sasuke begged, "Naruto wants to see, right?"

Naruto nodded, "Yes, please? Please?"

Itachi sighed, "Later, not now. Let's go before we're late. Kaa-san will have your asses on a silver platter if we're late."

Naruto pouted slightly, "Jeesh, does everyone around me swear a lot, or is it just me?"

"It's just Kiba." Sasuke responded. Naruto raised a brow, "How do you know he swears?"

"Just cuz I'm reading during school doesn't mean I'm deaf." Sasuke responded, glad that he had a plausible excuse. He really didn't want Naruto to know that he had been eavesdropping on his conversation. Naruto nodded, "Yeah, just Kiba."

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"They ditched us." Sasuke muttered. Naruto nodded. "Probably having fun in some games."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "I'm quite sure they didn't ditch us for a game."

"Then what?"

Naruto shook his head, "Never mind. They probably had things to talk about that kids like us can't hear."

Sasuke shrugged, "Now what do we do? I have enough money for food and a game." Naruto looked towards Sasuke, "Games are a waste of money, lets get some candy."

"No wait." Sasuke said, "Let's try out the haunted house." Naruto shook his head, "Are you serious. You wanna get the heck scared out of us by a bunch of people in masks?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

The both stared at each other in silence. Then they started walking towards the sign that said 'haunted house'.

"What kind of a festival is this?" Sasuke muttered, "More like a carnival…" He had a feeling of de ja vu but he paid for the both of them to enter the house. The man at the entrance smiled creepily at them and as the two boys passed in through the door. Naruto turned back to see that the man had a glare aimed towards him. He jumped and then latched onto Sasuke's sleeve.

"Scared?"

"N-no." Sasuke smiled slightly and said, "It's okay."

Naruto relaxed slightly and let his arms encircled Sasuke's, staying close.

Rags hung from the ceiling, shifting slightly from side to side, hiding anyone that could be lurking. They saw realistic spiders on huge webs and there was red all over some of the material that hung on the walls. A slight laughter came through the empty space and then out of the shadows jumped a man.

Naruto clung onto Sasuke tighter as the man loomed over them with a maniacal smirk on his face. He has some of that red liquid down the side of his face and he was wearing rags that had shuriken peeking through. The two boys didn't see the hand sign that he made and then they were trapped in a genjustu.

"Naruto?" Sasuke called. He could find his companion anywhere and wherever he ran, there were more bloodied nin, walking around like zombies, trying to grab him and take him with them to their underworld. He kept running, yelling out for wherever Naruto was.

The blonde was in a similar situation, except he had demons tearing at him. They wanted to get him and rip him apart. They screeched at him, binding him with their tails and slashing at him. He yelled for Sasuke and then thought, 'what the hell kind of a haunted house is this?'

Three men loomed over the two fallen boys.

"We got the Kyuubi brat and some other kid…" The first muttered.

"Lets get rid of him…" The second smirked. The third then picked up Sasuke, "This kid…he's an Uchiha."

"great, demon boy has made friends."

Sasuke heard laughter. His eyes snapped open and he immediately kicked whoever held him. He threw punches at whoever was around, angry that he had been foolish enough to be trapped it a genjustu.

"Naruto." He turned and looked at his friend and made a hand sign, "Dispel!"

The blonde awoke and then launched himself at Sasuke, nearly in tears.

"S-s-Sasuke, I-I-I d-d-don't l-like th-this, l-let's go p-p-please!" He buried his face into Sasuke shirt and the Uchiha turned to glare at the three men.

"Sh-sharingan!" The three men bolted out of there, running to tell their boss. Sasuke took the opportunity to get himself and Naruto to the exit. The two boys kept running until they were away from the festivities. Naruto blinked and realized they were in front of the academy building. Sasuke sat the boy down on the swing and asked, "Daijobu?"

The blonde slowly nodded, "Y-yeah, I'm okay now."

"They're not allowed to use genjustu." Sasuke growled, angry, "At least it wasn't too bad…"

"What did you see?" Naruto asked. Sasuke sighed, "Ninja Zombies…I think…how about you?"

Naruto stayed silent before he took a small breath and said, "Everyone always has called me a demon. I don't know why…today is supposed to be the day that the nine-tailed demon was killed, seven years ago…I guess it's just hostility that I was born on the day the fourth died. I have no parents. I saw demons. They were trying to tear me apart, Sasuke. They wanted to hurt me…I could feel how much this village hates me…"

Sasuke stared at him, "I don't hate you…" He softly said, "And today's your birthday?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, I can't ever forget. This festival is always then. I heard even the Hokage doesn't approve of this festival…but it's the one day that I'm treated even worst than dirt…and I don't even know why…"

Sasuke sat besides Naruto on the swing and wrapped an arm around him. His other arm held onto the chain as he softly kicked the ground to move the swing. The younger boy pulled his legs up and hugged them to his chest. He then looked up at Sasuke.

"The Sharingan are red, right?"

Sasuke nodded slightly. Naruto smiled, "Your eyes are red. I didn't know you had the Sharingan."

Sasuke stopped kicking the ground. He blinked and then he felt his eyes slowly melt back into onyx. He turned towards Naruto and then hugged him.

"Happy Birthday…" He muttered. Naruto smiled slightly, "you're the first to ever tell me so…"

"I don't have a present but…I promise I'll protect you. No matter what, I'll be your friend forever and I won't let anything bad happen to you." He hugged a shocked Naruto closer, "yakusoku…itsumo."

Naruto smiled and hugged the boy back, "Arigatou…Sasuke."

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A/N Aww, cute fluff. I know you're thinking that seven year old boys have the emotional range of a teaspoon if not less, but my rebuttal will be, if 12 year olds can become assassins in this world, then they have to be smart early, kinda like that one kid from the country of wave…y'know the crybaby in that arc with haku and zabuza. Inari or something. I don't uite remember. Gah, what is with the '' button…qqqq I have to like really hit 'q' in order for the damn letter to come up on the screen….nvm…just…nvm…quite.

So yes, next chapter will be the last one in which they are seven years old. I'll probably put further plot development there…and for the chapter after that, I have projected to sort of follow along the original story…sort of…with more fluff moments. Lady MacFluff is in da house! lol

Thanks for the reviews from: RaitenKitsune and terriestal-angell, who completed the ten reviews i needed to put up this next chapter XD Hope you enjoyed it.

Now for Learning Japanese with Lady MacFluff!

1. Sasuke doesn't want to call Naruto by his first name because they're not really friends. I guess you have to know a person to be able to call them by their first name.

2. Arigatou means 'thank you'

3. Aniki means 'brother'

4. Hai means 'yes'

5. kekkei Genkai means 'blood-line limit'

6. Kyuubi means 'nine-tailed'

7. Daijobu means 'are you okay?' or 'I'm okay.' Whichever meaning it is depends on the situation

8. Yakusoku means 'I promise'

9. Itsumo means 'forever' or 'always'


	3. Chapter 3 : Thank You

Aisubeki: Lovable

Chapter 3: Thank you

I don't own Naruto.

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"What are you doing?"

Itachi flipped through a file, "Just looking something up."

Shisui groaned, "I thought you wanted to sneak away to do something important." The younger Uchiha glared at him, "What you and I do is not important."

Shisui smirked, "What you and I do is each other, and how can you say that we're not important?"

"Perv, you should write your own books on that shit." Shisui laughed and leaned back in the chair, "I know a guy who's working on it. Really informed too…for a pupil of the third."

Itachi groaned, "I don't care, just keep your perverted fantasies out of my-"

"Ass?"

"life." Itachi growled and continued flipping through files, "Hah, Uzumaki!"

"You're doing a search on your little brother's friend? Now, who's the one that's twisted?" Itachi glared at the older Uchiha, "That would still be you."

"I see we've caught our intruders."

The two turned slowly to see the third standing in the doorway, "Those files are forbidden."

Itachi stood up, "Sir, I would like to ask why you have a seven year old boy in these files. These files are for the ninja's with sketchy pasts."

The Hokage sighed, "Seven years ago…you must have been around that age…Your little brother was only months old…on this very day…the nine-tailed was sealed into a newborn. The mother of the babe died. The father sacrificed himself for this village. Can you guess who was born on this day, seven years ago; the only one to be born on this day?"

"Uzumaki…Naruto." Itachi said. The elder nodded, "I only tell you this to refresh your memory; you must have known it before. It has been decreed to never speak of it again…but I have a task for you."

Itachi nodded, "What is it?"

"This festival…" He walked over to the window and looked over the lights in Konoha, "It's disgusting…those ninja whom survived bear such a heavy grudge…Will you judge him now that you know that he has a monster inside him?"

"He's too cute to be holding in a monster." Shisui mentioned, "Besides, if the monster is inside him, then doesn't that mean that it has no influence what-so-ever?"

"Naruto can draw on the power if he wishes, but it is only meant to protect him. I do not know everything that goes on in this place, but I can assure you that the villagers have not treated Naruto kindly…Yondaime's legacy…" He trailed off. Itachi nodded, "You want me to protect him?"

Sarutobi nodded, "Please…I don't want his intentions to turn out bad…if he is treated like he is a monster…he will eventually think he is one. He might become one. I do not wish that fate upon him." Itachi smiled slightly, "I think my little brother is better suited for this mission."

"Sasuke?" He asked. Itachi nodded, "He brought Naruto over today. They'll become good friends…I think that protection is what Sasuke wants to give him."

"Both of you then," He began, "Because Sasuke is too young for a mission."

Shisui smiled, "I'll help in any way I can, but first I think you should bring Naruto-chan closer. I mean, if he's halfway across town, wouldn't bringing him closer make this mission so much easier?"

The third paused, "I think that would be best."

-----

Naruto softly sighed. He looked up at his ceiling and wondered when _they_ would show up. It was only a matter of time before the rowdy and drunk veteran ninja would come upon his place for their yearly ritual of 'beat the monster up'. He scratched his belly and released a bit of chakra. Black lines appeared on his stomach in a seal. He didn't know what the seal was, but it comforted him in these times. It was the only thing in his life that was his. Nobody else's but his. It was like his family, even though he didn't have one.

A soft noise alerted him that someone was at his balcony. The person walked inside and muttered, "You should at least lock your doors."

Naruto knew he would regret these words but he said, "You people will just break them down anyways…my landlord will get mad at me for the damaged property."

The ANBU walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder, "Lets go." Then he picked him up. Naruto's eyes widened before, "W-where are we g-going? Put me d-down…" He expected a blow, followed by a harsh voice commanding that he shut up.

"Calm down, I'm getting you out of this dump. I wouldn't take anything cuz everything looks like it's been infested."

"W-what?"

"oh, sorry, it's me, Itachi." He flipped up his mask and gave Naruto a smile, "But I'm a secret, 'kay?" He pulled the mask back down and then carried Naruto out of the house.

"W-wait, my nightcap…" Itachi let the boy down so he could grab his cap.

"Is that a walrus?"

Naruto glared slightly, hugging his cap protectively, "Old Man Hokage gave me this when I moved in here. I've had it forever."

"Why weren't you wearing it now, then?"

Naruto looked at the floor, "I-if they knew I had it…they would destroy it…"

"Who?" Itachi asked, gathering the boy in his arms. Naruto rested his head on Itachi's shoulder and muttered, "They're always wearing masks…fox masks…they come every year, on my birthday and take away everything that's mine…I bet if my seal wasn't attached to my skin, they'd take that too…"

"Seal?" Itachi asked. Shisui walked closer to them as Naruto nodded, "The swirl seal on my stomach."

"Naruto-chan…" Shisui began, "Do you know what that seal is?" The sleepy boy shook his head.

"You must never show that seal to anyone. First you have to figure out what it is. Then, if you want to tell people about if after that, you can." Shisui smiled through his mask and pat the boy on his head. Naruto blinked at him, "Why?"

"Trust me." He flipped his mask up and ruffled the boy's hair, "Let's go then." He pulled his mask down and jumped to the next rooftop. Itachi soon followed, but he didn't fail to notice a group of people wearing masks walking down the street.

"Shisui." Itachi said, "Transform into Naruto and wait for them at his apartment. I'll leave the rest up to you."

"Okay." Shisui nodded and ran back into the apartment.

Naruto looked at Itachi, worried, "They'll hurt him…like they do to me…"

Itachi held the boy closer, "Don't worry, they won't hurt you anymore. You're coming with me, to live with me and Sasuke."

Naruto's eyes lit up, "Honto?" Itachi nodded, "Yup, I just have to convince my parents…"

Naruto's face fell. Itachi glanced at him and said, "Don't worry, they'll like you." Naruto smiled softly and muttered, "Arigatou…Itachi-nii…"

-----

"Itachi…" The head of the house rubbed his temple in frustration.

"Dear, please calm down…" Said the young woman next to him.

"Making such rash decision, what were you doing sneaking around in the Hokage's office?"

Itachi bowed his head, "I'm sorry, but I cannot say…I just want to ask your permission if he can stay here…the villagers don't treat him well…but they don't know him…and I know that you will like him. He is just a boy."

"But he's…Uzumaki Naruto." Itachi's father sighed, "I know I shouldn't judge but still…it might be awkward…Hokage's orders are his orders though. I have no choice but to accept…"

"I want him to be treated like a member of this family…" Itachi softly said. Itachi's mother smiled, "Of course, I always wondered what it would be like to have another son around here."

"What's going on?" Sasuke asked, stepping into the kitchen. Itachi smile at him, "Go to the guest room and wake up the new member of our family."

Sasuke raised a brow but turned and as he left he muttered, "Cracked, you've really cracked nii-san…"

Itachi's father held in a chuckle. He coughed instead.

Sasuke turned what must have felt like over a million corners before he arrived at the guest room. He knocked twice before entering. Waking over to the bed, he recognized the messy blonde hair. He smiled and reached over to wake up the blonde.

"Hey, wake up, breakfast is ready."

Two blue orbs peered at him, "Breakfast?"

"Yup."

"like…with family." Naruto looked sad, "Something I don't have." He sat up and sighed. Sasuke tackled him back onto the bed, launching into a tickle attack. Naruto squealed and then fought back, finding Sasuke's sides quickly. Soon both boys were exhausted, laying side by side. Sasuke turned and stuck his tongue out at Naruto, poking his nose it the process, "you're part of my family now. We're like brothers, and now since you're close to me, I can protect you no matter what."

Naruto looked away, "This is a dream. It's a big dream and I'm going to wake up soon."

"Mah, I promise this isn't a dream!" Sasuke said. Naruto looked at him, "Prove it."

"W-what?" Sasuke rolled his eyes, "How am I supposed to do that?"

Naruto shrugged. Sasuke sighed.

"You're being childish."

"Dun care."

"What do you want, a promise kiss?"

Naruto held out his hand, "Sure."

Sasuke looked at his hand, "Do you even know what a kiss is?"

Naruto's hand dropped, "Of course. It was a joke."

They both sat in silence until Sasuke tugged on Naruto's sleeve. Naruto looked at Sasuke and the Uchiha leaned forward. It was just a brief touching of lips at which both boys were a little shocked.

"I promise, this isn't a dream." Sasuke said after a few seconds of silence. Naruto smile slightly and hugged the other boy, "Arigatou, Sasuke-nii…"

The Uchiha hugged him back and said, "Let's go, breakfast is waiting. Mom gets mad if it get's cold…"

Shisui smiled and skipped down the hall before he launched himself into the kitchen, effectively landing on Itachi and squishing him.

"Ohayo, Uchiha-san." He smiled, "Oh, breakfast looks so good…"

"Can't…Breath…" Itachi wheezed, his hand clutching onto the table.

"Oh, Itachi! Didn't see ya there."

Itachi got up as soon as the older Uchiha got up. Itachi looked at him with a lethal glare, "If looks could kill you'd be twelve feet under because I'd have killed you twice." He turned back to his breakfast.

Sasuke and Naruto chose this time to enter the kitchen.

"Kaa-san, look this is my friend, Naruto."

She nodded at him, "I heard, come on boys, have breakfast before it gets cold." Shisui launched himself at the boys, hugging them close and squealing "Kawaii!!"

Itachi rolled his eyes, "Stop taking estrogen." Shisui glared at him, "Itachi is so mean, right Sasuke? Butt-munch."

Itachi glared at him again, "You're the one that taught Sasuke to call me that. You're a bad influence on children. Get out."

Shisui smirked, "But don't you want to know the state of about thirty morons?" Itachi raised a brow, "Thirty?"

"Well, thirty in jail. Some of them got away. But they'll be found soon. I thought I was gonna die, such hostility…Naruto-chan, I admire you!" He hugged the boy again, who was just standing there, dumbstruck.

"What happened?" Their father asked. Shisui sat back down at the table and shook his head. Naruto tugged on his sleeve, "Shisui-nii…?"

"I truly admire your bravery…to put up with that…" He shuddered slightly but then smiled, "Itadakimasu!"

Everyone responded and began to eat their food. Sasuke's and Itachi's parents would eventually stop to ask Naruto questions about himself, his life, his likes and his dislikes.

"That's right; you wanted to see my Sharingan?" Itachi asked. Naruto shook his head, "I saw Sasuke's. They're pretty."

The whole table, except Naruto, turned to stare at Sasuke.

"Sasuke, is that true?" His father asked. Sasuke nodded, "It happened yesterday…I got out of a genjustu that those stupid people put on me and Naruto in the haunted house. I didn't even notice…but Naruto did." He smiled slightly at Naruto who smiled back.

"Well, let's see." His father said. Sasuke narrowed his eyes and a red swirl appeared in them. His Sharingan stopped spinning to show two marks in his left eye, but only one mark in the right.

"Hah, not fully developed, but it's there." Itachi said, "Good job, little brother."

"Ah, yay! More of the pretty red." Shisui beamed. Sasuke's father smiled at him, proud. His mother smiled at Sasuke first, and then at Naruto, "I bet you had something to do with it."

Sasuke spoke up, "I just…wanted to protect him, because they were being mean…they're not supposed to use genjustu at a festival, right?"

Sasuke's father nodded, "Haunted house, you said? I know who ran that…I'll have a talk with them today…" He stood up, wiping the corners of his mouth with a napkin, "Thank you for the food." He said, "Itte kimasu."

"Itterasshai." Was the response. Naruto smiled, a warm feeling engulfing him. He watched everyone else have conversation at the table and he joined in, feeling like he belonged.

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A/N Yay! I've written three chapters in one night! yeah, I'm on a role! Whoot! Oh yeah, raise da roof! XD well. I could write another chapter…but I'm tired….whoa, it's 12:30 in the am. Ima need sleep…I gots ta go to work tomorrow…that's so weird…me and work don't belong in the same sentence…erk…the review button tells you "click me or I will implode!!!"

Learn Japanese with Lady MacFluff!

Honto means 'really'

Nii-san is another way to say 'brother'

–san is used for older people or people you respect

Kawaii means 'cute' or 'scary' depending on how ou pronounce it. If it's pronounced like 'hawaii' it means scary. If pronounced kah-wah-ee, then it means cute.

Itadakimasu is what is said before a meal.

Itte kimasu means 'I'm off now/see you'

Itterasshai means 'have a nice day'


	4. Chapter 4 : You Are The Dead Last

Chapter 4: You are the Dead Last

I don't own Naruto.

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A sigh escaped his lips. He was twelve and he had just passed his exam to become a real ninja. In a way, he was excited to finally be able to move on. Failing three times really grew on you. Of course, none of the other children had even tried when they were younger. They had waited to gain more experience.

He had tried though. He wanted to get this education over with. He wanted to gain power quickly, but lately he felt as if he was loosing it. He scratched his stomach and Shisui's words came back to him. He chuckled to the wind.

"Heh, I don't think I want to tell anyone about this…not even Sasuke…" His eyes flew to the ground.

He had been fine if he had failed again. He didn't want to be put on the same team as Sasuke. Sasuke hated him. He slowly began to swing himself. He glanced at the academy building, blond hair becoming an even larger disarray in the wind.

"Might as well get it over with."

Standing suddenly, he ran towards the building. As soon as he stepped into the classroom, he searched. The blonde was searching for his ex-friend. Blue eyes spotted the older boy sitting by himself near the window. With a slight spring in his step, he sat next to the boy.

"S-Sasuke-san…" He softly said. Sasuke glanced at him with cold, dark eyes. Naruto pointed to the protector on his forehead. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"That makes your forehead look huge, like that freak you like." Naruto shushed the boy, glancing around, hoping no one had heard.

"I was just showing you, jeesh." He glared. Sasuke reached over and pulled the protector from his forehead, letting it rest on the other boy's neck.

"That looks better." Sasuke smirked, "you don't look like a reject ninja."

Naruto fumed and put his head down on the desk. The door flew open to the room and Naruto looked up.

Sparkles might as well have flown in through the door as a pink-haired kunoichi ran in. She immediately turned to her blonde-haired companion and began bickering. Naruto felt heat rush to his face, 'Sakura-chan.'

She stopped and turned, smiling toward Naruto's direction. She ran towards them and as Naruto quickly got up, she too quickly pushed him out of the way.

"Sasuke-kun, is this seat taken?"

Naruto almost began to sob on the floor as most of the girls in the class stepped over or on him to fight for the right to sit next to Sasuke. He quickly stood and jumped over to the table, staring Sasuke right in the face.

"What the hell is so great about you…" He muttered. He distantly heard most of the girls began to voice their complaints. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, a flash of red going through them before he smirked, "I'm just better than you."

Naruto opened his mouth but something hit him square in the butt. He jumped slightly, causing him to lose his balance on his toes. He fell forward, his face crashing into Sasuke's, their lips meeting.

It wasn't an innocent kiss. It was full of aggression. Naruto, who had been on the verge of saying something, had his mouth open, so when he fell, Sasuke felt the sharp pain of teeth on his upper lip. He winced and was about to voice his complaint, but forgot that Naruto was blocking his own voice. When they pulled away, a mix of blood and saliva was on both their lips.

Sasuke whipped away the blood and pressed his hand to his upper lip, glaring heavily at Naruto. He then smirked, knowing just the way to get the younger boy riled up.

"Do you bite everyone, Uzumaki?"

Naruto's face was first blank. Then he registered the squeals of the girls, from either jealousy or admiration at the bold acclamation Sasuke had made. Then blood started rushing to his face. His face was soon going to rival the red of Sasuke's Sharingan and his heart was beating faster. He pressed a hand to his mouth and wanted to leap back. He had completely forgotten he was on a desk.

Sasuke reached forward quickly and grabbed the front of Naruto's shirt, stopping his fall onto three more rows of desks.

"Are you trying to split your head open?" He asked, settling back into his desk after he pulled Naruto back. Naruto then yelled, "I wouldn't have jumped back if you hadn't been disgusting!" An expression Naruto didn't recognize flashed across Sasuke's face before he reverted to completely ignoring the blonde.

"What did you call Sasuke?"

Naruto turned to look at about 15 very pissed of girls.

"Shit."

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"So your teams are…" Iruka began happily. Naruto winced slightly, dabbing a wet, cold, paper towel on his cheek. He felt the swelling go down little by little and he figured we would be healed by the time Iruka was done talking.

'Probably because of the Kyuubi.' He thought. He sighed and put his head down on the desk.

"Team 7 will be Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka began. Naruto perked up slightly, the swelling almost completely gone from his face.

"Haruno Sakura."

Naruto jumped up, ready to throw a party. His face fell when Iruka said, "and Uchiha Sasuke."

"Sensei!" Naruto cried once he had finished calling out the names. Iruka looked up, "Yes?"

"Why the heck am I in the same group as HIM!?" He pointed at Sasuke, who couldn't really care less, besides the fact that he would have rather it had been a team of three guys instead of two guys and a girl.

Iruka sighed and put down his papers, "Sasuke graduated with the highest grades in the class." His voice raised and he glared at the blonde, "Dobe ga!" Naruto plopped back down in his chair as the whole class made fun of him.

"Calm down, Dobe." Sasuke taunted softly. Naruto jumped up, "What did you call me?!"

"Dobe."

"Nani!?"

"Dobe. Dobe. Dobe."

Naruto gritted his teeth, knowing he could do nothing with his teacher looking directly at him. He sat back down and muttered, "Teme."

Iruka glared at him, "What did you say?" He sighed, "Too bad I can't scold you. Your new teachers will be here after lunch, which is now-"

Before Iruka could even finish, he was trampled over by a whole bunch of twelve year olds, ready to eat.

Naruto ran out of the building yelling, "Sakura-chan!" She stopped and turned, putting on an annoyed face.

"I was, um, wondering if, um, since we're in the same team and all, if we could eat lunch together." He asked, hopefully. She glared down at him, "Eww, no. you're so annoying…"' She turned and left.

Naruto turned too and went back into the building, intent on eating on the roof, alone, as he had always for the past four years. He closed a hand around his onigiri, almost crushing it. Sasuke used to eat with him. That was before…before it happened.

"_I swear…I'll get revenge…I'll kill him…"_

Naruto sighed and bit into it, having reached the roof. After that, Sasuke had pushed him away. He sighed and then glanced around. He saw Sasuke in one of the windows, eating and Onigiri. Naruto smiled a little and looked down to his own pitiful rice ball. He sighed and jumped down from the roof, landing softly on the shingles next to Sasuke.

"Heya." He said and jumped into the window. Sasuke ignored him.

"Is he trying to pick a fight again?" Asked a blonde. The boy next to her shrugged.

"dunno. Dun care." He lay back and sighed.

"Shikamaru, you're too lazy."

'Ino, you're too loud.' He thought, but dare not say it. He glanced over at his friend.

"Chouji, share." He reached out a hand and the round boy merely held his bag of chip closer, "Say please."

"Shh, look, I wonder what they're talking about…" Ino muttered.

Naruto sighed, "Please stop ignoring me, I said I was sorry." He started to play with the small pole that held the window open, running his fingers along it.

"That hurt." He muttered. Sasuke sighed and turned to him, "Don't play with that it'll-"

SNAP

"ITAIIIIIII"

"-close on your finger…" Sasuke sighed and opened the window a little, letting Naruto get his finger free. Sasuke sighed again, some of of his exasperation aimed at Naruto's stupidity, the rest of it aimed at a little blood on the blonde's finger.

"Here, let me see, Dobe."

"Teme, don't call me that."

"I'll call you whatever I want." Sasuke said, taking Naruto's hand to examine it. He took out of his pack a small first aid kit and began to bandage the boy's finger.

"There, all better." Sasuke muttered when he was done/ Naruto glared at him, "What, no kiss for my boo-boo?"

Naruto jumped when he saw the other boy kiss his finger, "There. _Now_ it's all better."

Naruto glared, "Teme."

"Usuratonkachi." Sasuke muttered. Naruto turned to yell at him but instead said, "Hey, you're lip's hurt."

"Whose fault do you think that is?" Sasuke replied bitterly. Naruto looked at the floor, "I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to…I didn't realize…it was an accident."

Sasuke sighed, "It's all right already, it wasn't your fault. It was the guy who stuck his elbow in your ass."

Naruto blushed, "Why must you say that?"

Sasuke shrugged, "It's the truth. Besides, you swear all the time."

"Yeah, I swear, but I don't say things like that."

"Like what?"

"Like…you know." Naruto turned away. He squealed like a surprised mouse when Sasuke whispered in his ear, "Sexually?" He let the word roll of his tongue perfectly, sending a shudder down Naruto's spine. The blonde glared at him, 'Yeah, like that."

"So what, it's just elbow in ass." Sasuke gave a grin. Naruto rolled his eyes, "You've been reading Icha Icha again…at least you don't get caught at it. The bookstore keeper can smell me when I'm within three feet of the store…"

"You should try harder…besides it's a good read."

"Perv…You've always been such a perv." Naruto said. Sasuke shook his head, "I only learned…I only learned from the best…"

They both knew whom they had shifted to, neither wanting to tread deeper into that territory. Naruto first spoke, "Can we change the subject?" Sasuke nodded. He picked up his last remaining Onigiri and then looked at Naruto, "You only packed one…again?"

"I have neither time nor experience to make more in the morning…I'm no cooking Guru. That's why I live off of Ramen." Naruto pouted. Sasuke took a bite out of his Onigiri, much to Naruto's chagrin. Before the other boy could complain, Sasuke offered him the food, "Have a bite."

Naruto perked up and bit into the offered food, tasting the difference between Sasuke's cooking and his own. Sasuke smiled slightly when he saw the smile on Naruto's face, "Arigatou."

Sasuke shrugged and brought the food to his lips. He winced and put the food down as the small cut on his lip opened. Naruto looked up at Sasuke fell of remorse and said, "I'm really sorry."

"Stop apologizing already, I've told you it annoys me."

"But-"

"Why don't you put that mouth to better use?"

Naruto blushed, "So vulgar!" He turned away.

Sasuke looked at the clock, "Lunch time is almost over, you'd better get back."

"and you?" Naruto asked. Sasuke looked away.

The blonde took a couple of steps back before shaking his head. He ran forwards and knocked Sasuke over, capturing him around the waist. They both landed on the floor.

"Doshite…why do you sometimes treat me like I'm your friend…and then push me away…do you…" Naruto pulled away, "Do you hate me that much?"

Neither of them spoke until Naruto left. Sasuke sat up and leaned his head against the wall, "I can't hate you, Usuratonkachi…"

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"So tell me a little bit about yourselves…your name, likes, dislikes, and dreams."

Sakura sighed, "Maybe you should give us an example."

"Well, my name is Hatake Kakashi…I have many things I dislike…I don't have a desire to tell you what I like…and my dreams…okay, your turn. Pink haired girl."

"My name is Haruno Sakura." She began, annoyed, "I like…um well…" She glanced at Sasuke, "My dreams are…um, well…eeeee." She blushed and turned away from Sasuke. She looked dead towards Kakashi and said "I hate Naruto."

Naruto bowed his head in shame.

"Your turn."

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There aren't many thing I like and a lot of things I dislike…but I have no dream…I have a goal…to kill a certain person."

Kakashi raised a brow but looked towards Naruto. The blonde, who really was in no mood to be playing Kakashi's game said, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, I'm the kid who painted on the Hokages." He grinned. Kakashi rolled his eyes, "Continue…"

"I like Ramen a lot. And Onigiri. I don't have much taste for other food…I like the color blue a lot. Um what else do I like…oh, I like running really fast…and beating the crap out of people who deserve it."

Sasuke snorted. Naruto glared at him, "You're next. I swear you are."

"I hate sexual innuendos. Completely. I even hate the bastard who is always spewing them as if he's reading straight out of an Icha Icha book."

Again Sasuke snorted and Naruto said, "you know who I'm talking about, you bastard."

"Sasuke is not a bastard! And he wouldn't say any sexual anything, anytime! He's a gentleman."

Sasuke snorted slightly. Naruto glared at him, "Oh god, you want to respond to that…how bad you want to respond to that?"

"I'm holding it in." Sasuke responded with a smirk. The sexual suggestion was so evident Sakura had to blush.

"See I told you." Naruto said, "I also hate this little game of getting to know each other better. We all hate each other…mostly…but I think she's crazy for it. Also a waste of time, cuz no matter how many undertones he uses, he is asexual."

Kakashi smirked, "You're a very interesting guy."

"I'm not done yet." Naruto said, already annoyed with his new Sensei, "I have dreams. A lot of them. I want to be Hokage. I want to regain my friend…and I also want revenge. I won't be like Sasuke and say they're goals, because I know that I'll probably never achieve them, but getting close is good enough for me."

Naruto looked at Kakashi with a smirk. Kakashi smiled under his mask, "I think my respect for you just went up a little bit."

"Oh, and I've never ever broken a promise!" Naruto smiled. Sasuke scoffed.

"And you, have you broken promises?" Kakashi asked him.

Sasuke sighed, "I've only made one promise in my life and I would never break it. Yakusoku Istumo." The four of them remained silent until Kakashi told them of their training.

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Naruto went home feeling heavy. He just collapsed onto the bed, forgetting that he had to eat, or anything else. He just wanted to sleep. He stared at the wall after about an hour.

He was tired.

He was dead tired.

Why couldn't he fall asleep?

"_ne, Naruto. Look in my eyes." Blue eyes met red. Naruto stared as slowly, the black marks began to move in a circle. They were slow, hypnotizing. He felt his eyes become heavy after a while. The circular motion sped up and he had a hard time keeping up._

_He gave up, letting his eyes rest, falling into a deep sleep. Slowly, the marks came to a stop, showing the underdeveloped Sharingan. The boy smiled a little before settling into his own bed, being lulled to sleep by the soft breaths of his friend._

_Sasuke sighed before he was completely out of it, "Oyasumi, Naruto…watashi no Aisubeki no Naruto."_

_Naruto, of course, didn't hear this. He never did._

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A/N and thus why the title. Hola again. Fourth chapter here. I'm really on a roll…like a donut…dun ask. I'm hungry. Feed me. I live off of reviews. Don't make me go hungry XD giving a new meaning to the term 'starving artist'…what is a starving artist? Is it a painter who is hungry for food or hungry for inspiration? Is it a writer who wants a burger or is in dire need for the cure to writers block? Is it a singer with a case of the munchies or an unpopular singer? Don't ask. Just don't ask. Lady MacFluff is in da house!

I bet you all want an explanation.

In English, we're watching Macbeth. And Lady Macbeth and Lady Macduff. And I've heard the word fluff too many times to not think, hey, 'duff' rhymes with 'Fluff' it's Lady MacFluff!!! So, yeah, basically, I'm insane.

Learn Japanese with Lady MacFluff!

(1) Anata wa Dobe means 'you are dead last'...'dobe ga' means the same thing...it just sounds cooler. i'll find out what Iruka says tho...

(2) Dobe means 'dead last'

(3) Nani means 'what'

(4) Teme means 'bastard'

(5) Onigiri means 'rice ball'

(6) Itai means 'it hurts/oww'

(7) Usuratonkachi means a combination of things: dense, stupid, moronic. Basically. 'Moron of morons'

(8) Doshite means 'why'

(9) Icha Icha is the book Kakashi always reads: Make Out Paradise

(10) Oyasumi, Naruto…watashi no Aisubeki no Naruto means 'good night, Naruto…My lovable Naruto.' Excuse me is the grammar is wrong but it took me a full ten minutes to get this far…I think I'm right…

(11) Ne is another one of those articles…same as ka. So when Sasuke says 'ne, Naruto.' He's saying 'hey, Naruto.'


	5. Chapter 5 : Please…Stand up

Chapter 5: Please…Stand up

I don't own Naruto.

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The first emotion that hit him was fear. He was afraid, not for his own life, but of the life of his friend. Friend. Was he even allowed to call him that? They rarely spoke to each other. They only yelled with words of malice, laced with sarcasm and spite.

Well, he yelled, not Sasuke. Sasuke would sometimes not even recognize that Naruto was even there. The raven really knew what to do to get him mad. But as of now, he felt fear.

Sasuke was all alone, trapped in an ice prison and Naruto wanted to go to him, to fix every shallow cut on his body, to make the pain go away. He snuck in to save Sasuke, not even stopping to think that he had just made the situation worst. He was scolded of course, something he had just ignored.

The next emotion he felt was rage. This prison was frustrating him to no end. Sasuke was getting hurt and they could not get out of there. On more than one occasion he found himself cursing the fact that Sasuke was taking most of the hits for him. Why would someone who hated him try to protect him?

This thought brought about confusion, which in turn brought about exhaustion. Everything happened so fast. He felt himself fall. He didn't know how long he was unconscious, but when he opened his eyes, he looked passed Sasuke's legs and saw Haku on the floor.

Joy overcame him, but Sasuke spoke, "You all right?"

The small amount of happiness that came over him, was gone. He looked up, almost afraid and then his eyes widened. He opened his mouth to speak a couple of times, but he could not find the words in his mouth.

Sasuke chuckled, "What's wrong with you, Dobe?" Finally, his voice found him and he barely croaked out, "Y-you…saved me…" He felt something burning behind his eyes, but held it in.

Another bout of rage overcame him and he leapt up, "Why did you save me! I'm not even worth saving! WHY!?" He bowed his head, hoping and praying that whatever injury Sasuke had sustained was not serious, that he would not…he could even bring himself to think it.

But he knew.

"He knew it was a trap, and he was willing to sacrifice himself for you." Haku said, standing. He took a couple of steps back and observed the scene before him. It wasn't amusing at all as he watched the pain stricken expression on Naruto's face. He felt sorry for doing that to him…but his loyalty and love for Zabuza was absolute. The expression on his face, behind his mask, softened. Maybe this boy, Naruto, loved the raven just as much.

Sasuke muttered, "Ya…yakusoku….i…istu…mo…" He turned to look at Naruto and gave a very weak smile. Naruto could only stare with wide eyes, not believing for a second that Sasuke would go out of his way to keep a promise.

"I…thought that I…that I hated you…" Sasuke rasped before beginning to fall backwards. Naruto ran forward, catching the Uchiha in his arms and falling with him. Sasuke's head lolled onto Naruto's upper arm and he smiled weakly. Naruto just kept staring, his voice having left him yet again.

"I…I hate leaving you with such a burden…I wanted to kill him…for…the family…and…because he hurt you…" Sasuke closed his eyes slowly and opened them again. He lifted his hand and touched Naruto's face softly.

"Don't die."

His hand fell to the floor and his eyes closed. Naruto still didn't move, just staring at Sasuke's still form.

It hurt. That was the next emotion. Pain. It felt as if someone tore into his chest and began squeezing his heart. One arm still around Sasuke, he clutched his chest.

"I…" Naruto began, letting his tears flow down his whiskered cheeks, "I never…ever…hated you…You're my nii…no…you're more…you were even protecting me…when you thought I didn't know…"

Naruto hugged Sasuke's still body close to his chest, feeling an immense amount of pain flowing through his whole body now. He looked at Sasuke's face and brushed the back of his hand on Sasuke's cheek. With his fingers, he pulled that single strand of annoying hair from Sasuke's face.

He was so pale, Naruto noted. He was cold too. Naruto felt more tears, more pain. Then he was angry. Angry that he could do nothing. Angry that he didn't do anything. Angry that he wasn't strong enough to protect the one person he…

He what? What was Sasuke to him? A friend? No, it was more than that. A brother? It was a long time ago…but Sasuke was even more than a brother. Naruto shook his head, clearing it from any other thoughts. What was Sasuke to him? He liked Sasuke, more that he liked Sakura. He liked him in the same way he thought he liked Sakura.

Before he even figured out what exactly his feelings for Sasuke were, he had pressed his lips to Sasuke's, urgently. Tears stung in the back of his eyes; Sasuke's lips were cold. His warm tears fell from his eyes to Sasuke's cheeks, sliding down them. Naruto pulled away and pressed their foreheads together, a small noise of metal on metal coming from their hitae-ate.

Slowly, anger started flowing through him and he felt something hot burning in his eyes. He was seeing red as he let Sasuke's limp form slip from his arms to lay on the floor. Haku looked at him and felt a little bit of pity for Naruto, "Is this the first time…you've seen a friend die…it's a horrible fate, that of a shinobi…"

Naruto didn't pay attention, but he felt when Haku moved to go back onto his mirror. More red bled into his vision and he really didn't know if he was bleeding tears or not.

Kill him…

Naruto wasn't even startled at the voice, he just agreed with it, glaring heartily at the floor. He closed his eyes, a rush of power coming through him.

Tear him apart…

Naruto re-opened his eyes and glared, red eyes burning a hole right to Haku's soul. Haku noticed the whiskers on his cheek had become deeper, darker, more pronounced. His eyes widened. All the cuts and injuries he had given the blonde were now fading away into nothing.

"I'll Kill You." He said. His voice was different, deeper and laced with the full intent of death. Haku felt a shudder run down his spine, settling deep in his stomach. The chakra leaking from Naruto, it was full of ill-intent. It wanted to tear him apart; kill him painfully slow and watch him suffer.

He knew he was going to die. He took a step back, trying to act casual, as if he hadn't noticed the change. He was halfway in his mirror, when all of a sudden, the blonde caught his wrist, jerked him around and punched him in the face.

Pain exploded around him as he was launched, head first, into his ice mirror, the same ice mirror that Sasuke's hottest fire Justu couldn't melt.

He knew it was over. He was curious though. How did the blonde gain so much power. He knows why already. It was because of the Uchiha, laying dead less than twenty feet away. It was obvious Naruto cared for him deeply. It was obvious that Naruto was willing to die for him, just as he had just done.

Haku stood, shakily waiting for the next blow. He felt the blonde rush at him, ready to smash his skull into a million pieces. He opened his eyes partially and dimly noted that his mask slipped off. He saw Naruto running towards him. The blonde just stopped a few centimeters short of his face.

"Why do you hesitate?" Haku asked. Naruto's shoulder's relaxed, "You're…from the woods…" Haku gave a slight nod, "It really does not matter. It doesn't justify what I have done."

Naruto's temper flared up again and he punched Haku's face. Haku faltered back, but didn't fall from the blow, "You'll have to hit me harder than that if you wish to kill me."

Naruto looked at the floor when Haku spoke again, "Do you not wish to kill me, when I killed your friend?"

Naruto glanced back at Sasuke. The voice in his head was gone, but he decided to ponder on whose it was later. He no longer saw everything in hues of red and the power that flowed through him was gone. He still felt the rage and adrenaline pumping through his veins though.

Naruto gripped a kunai in his hand and Haku spoke, "I have been defeated. I had no purpose than to serve Zabuza, and now I am useless."

Naruto wanted to tell him he was a fool for being Zabuza's tool, but what came out of his mouth was, "You really love him, don't you?"

Haku gave a small nod. Naruto growled and glared before he jerked his head towards Sasuke, "I really loved…love him too." He shook his head, refusing to think of Sasuke in the past tense. Haku's eyes lowered to the ground.

"I bet…Zabuza knows how you feel about him." Naruto continued. Again Haku gave a small nod, "He'd be a fool not to." Naruto closed his eyes and muttered, "Sasuke never knew…we've lived up to this point hating each other…the fake kind of hate. Putting on a front for other people. You asked me before who my precious person is…Sasuke is my precious person and I didn't even realize it…until it was too late…"

Haku's eyes softened for the boy before him. He hated this part of being a shinobi. Tearing people away, forcing them to break their bonds. He shook his head and said, "Finish me…I am of no further use for Zabuza."

Naruto felt as if he was watching the fight rather than fighting the fight. He watched himself attack. He watched himself fail. He watched Haku die. He watched Zabuza die. He couldn't stop the pain in his chest.

They…were good humans…

He agreed with the voice, not letting it bother him that he was hearing voices in his head. It was only another sign of his impending insanity. He glanced over to where Sakura was, crying profusely over Sasuke.

The voice in his head urged him, "go to him" He gave a slight nod, again not questioning the voice, but agreeing with it. Walking past Kakashi, he just stood next to Sakura. She looked up at him, tears staining her face. He sat beside her and she moved away from him a little, just watching him, asking the unsaid question of 'what are you doing?'

He leaned over and rested his forehead on Sasuke's chest. He held back the tears. He wasn't supposed to show that he cared for, even loved, Sasuke.

However hard he tried to hold back the tears, they fell anyway. Sakura just continued to look at him, confusion in her eyes but he began to speak softly. Sakura only cried softly listening to Naruto's words, listening to the blonde, begging for this not to be true.

"Sasuke…onegai, tachiagaru…" he muttered into the raven's chest, He sighed and then let out a laugh, a very sad sound. Sakura let a few more tears fall, her hair sticking to her cheeks.

Kakashi walked over to them, and even the villagers had stopped to mourn for the boy. Naruto continued his monologue by saying, "Damn Uchihas." Sakura furrowed a brow, but didn't say a word, letting the boy continue, "Going on leaving me alone…going on to die, or become crazy and deranged…or become a stupid bastard."

"You're such a jerk, you know?" He let out a laugh, "But you were still nice to me. Damn you, teme." He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to Sasuke's chest, "You promised…Shimatta…Who's going to stop me from my klutz attacks, huh? You know how many more times I'm going to end up in the hospital without you around, huh? You're always there to save me from doing stupid things. Like when I almost fell off the swing…I nearly cracked my head open if you hadn't caught me…"

Kakashi put a hand on Naruto's shoulder but he continued, "You bring me food so many times, because you know I can't afford it. You bandaged this hand up…" He looked at the bandage then smirked sadly, "Heck, we came up with a good plan back there…"

Naruto sat up, his voice having left him. Sakura looked down at the ground and muttered softly, "Naruto…" He looked up at her, his eyes empty, no longer the bright cerulean she was so used to, but a dull, navy blue. It brought more tears to her eyes. She closed them, her shoulder's shaking.

"hn…that…was a good plan…" his voice was so soft and full of pain. Naruto's eyes snapped towards Sasuke's face, where his eyes were slowly opening. His breaths came very shallow, almost as if he couldn't breath well.

Sakura saw how he changed. His eyes lightened and it looked like he would cry again, but then his brow furrowed. The blonde leapt to his feet and his voice found him rather quickly, "How long have you been awake?"

Sasuke slowly sat up and groaned, pulling needles out of his body. He pulled a few out of his neck and then breathed deeply. Sasuke spoke softly, almost at if it hurt to speak, "Since you started bawling all over me…I was going to tell you that you were heavy…but some of these needles prevented me from breathing well…"

He pulled out more needles and soon he had a bunch of people harping on him, helping him to remove the needles. Sasuke wiped at his cheeks, feeling dried tears. They weren't his, he knew, but who would have been that close to him to get tear stains on both of his cheeks?

His licked his dry lips, pushing the thought to the back of his mind, but they quickly resurfaced. He tasted ramen on his own lips. Something fell into place, but he refused to believe it was true.

He turned his head to Naruto, only to find the blond glaring at him. Sasuke stood up and immediately Sakura was by his side, but he ignored her and spoke to Naruto, "So you finally admit to being a klutz?"

Sakura looked up in time to watch Naruto's face turn from fury, to shock, and then she saw the blood rushing to his face. She had to smile slightly and she, in a very un-lady-like manner, rubbed her cheeks and eyes.

"Usotsuki!!" Naruto cried. Sasuke said something back. Naruto replied. Kakashi shook his head. Sakura was just glad that nothing had changed.

It wasn't until later, when they had gotten back to the house and Sasuke was bandaged up, that Sasuke turned to Sakura and asked, "So what happened after I was knocked out?"

She looked up from her tea, surprised that Sasuke was asking her instead of Naruto. Well, it did make a little sense, since Naruto was in the shower, and Kakashi was lost in his book. She looked back to the warm liquid, staring at her reflection and said, "I really don't know."

He tilted his head as she continued, "You were stuck there for a while, and then there was a surge of power…it was so much chakra. I heard the sound the glass makes when it breaks, so I thought that you and Naruto had broken free. The fog started lifting…and then sensei went to finish of Zabuza, but Haku interfered."

She took a breath, "We were winning. I got a little worried for you and Naruto…but then I saw Naruto. That was when the other people showed up, and Zabuza switched sides. He killed most of them and their leader. The villagers scared the rest of them away. Then, you woke up."

Sasuke nodded, "Makes sense…but did Naruto… beat Haku?"

Sakura gave a slight shrug and brought the cup to her lips. They sat in silence until Sakura said, softly, "I don't think Naruto would make it without you." He looked up at her, surprised that she would say such a thing. Before he could even ask why, she began again, "He would purposefully do something pigheaded to get himself killed if you weren't around…What I want to know is…why he mentioned the Uchihas in general."

She stopped there, waiting for Sasuke's response. He gave a sigh and then folded his hands in front of his face, "Naruto…we used to live together…he was sort of like…the adopted child." He shook his head, "After…that incident…" He didn't need to explain. Sakura knew that his clan was dead, "We still lived together…but all of a sudden, he moves out a year ago and he expects me not to get pissed." The last words slipped out of his mouth unintentionally.

Naruto rested his head on the wall, listening to what Sasuke had to say, "besides that, he had my family as his own. So when they all died-"

"Crazy and deranged. He wasn't talking about you, I hope." Sakura interrupted. Naruto turned into the room, clad in his orange pants, a white undershirt and a towel around his shoulders.

"I was talking about Itachi-nii." He said casually. Sasuke sent him a glare to which Naruto said, "You don't even speak his name without having to punch something. I was doing you a favor."

"My older brother." Sasuke continued, ignoring the blonde, "he was the one who…" Naruto rolled his eyes and continued for him, "I wasn't home at the time, but Sasuke was. Itachi-nii-"

"Stop calling him that." Sasuke interjected. He sent a glare to the blonde and then got up, "I'm going to bed."

Naruto looked at Sasuke's retreating back before he turned to Sakura and continued, "Itachi-nii was the one who killed the entire clan…Sasuke has hated him and sworn revenge ever since." with a sigh he said, "He…never told me what happened, but…He did say he saw them all die. I don't…" Naruto stopped short and shook his head, "I think I've said too much. I'm going to bed now. Sasuke will be wanting to kill me now."

Naruto gave a laugh and said, "Hey, Sakura-chan, if he really does kill me, you can swear revenge for me and follow Sasuke to the end of the earth!" He walked out of the room, Sakura's flustered yells echoing through the house.

When he made it upstairs, he ignored the death glare that Sasuke gave him and crawled into his futon. After about five minutes of dead silence, Naruto said, "I only told her that you were there and I wasn't. That you would know more than I would."

"And that you still don't believe me?" Naruto shook his head, "No, I didn't get much more than that." Sasuke crossed his arms and Naruto sat up. They stared at nothing in particular until Sasuke asked, "Did…did you cry over me?"

Naruto looked up, thanking Kami-sama that it was too dark in the room for Sasuke to see his blush. He nodded and said, "Ch-chotto…A little…" Sasuke moved closer to Naruto and asked, "Where did you find the time to eat Ramen this morning?" He asked. Naruto huffed and said, "Inari's mom made some for me…this morning…I just…sorta wolfed it down, how did you know I ate Ramen this morning?"

Sasuke looked away but muttered, "There…were tears on my cheeks…and the taste of ramen…was…" Sasuke needn't say anymore. Naruto blushed again. Sasuke knew. Sasuke knew. The shit has hit the fan.

He had no explanation as to why he had done it. He just fidgeted with the hem of his shirt. The raven touched his arm briefly and asked, "Why did you…we haven't…since we were little…and that was a little stupid."

Naruto chuckled, feeling relieved. He looked at his own hands and said, "Trying to hold onto my past, I guess…"

_"S-Sasuuuuukkeeeeee." Wailed one young blonde boy. He sat on the floor, blood staining his orange pants where they were ripped at the knee. Sasuke was by his side instantly, with bandages._

_"Naruto, shh," Sasuke said patting the boy on the head. Naruto instantly quieted, only slight sniffles coming from him. The older boy cleaned the wound, at which Naruto began wailing again, and wrapped his knee in bandages._

_"Ah, Naruto. Please don't do that again. If I wasn't there to stop you from falling too far, you might have cracked your head open." At the notion of cracking his head open, Naruto shut up, fear overcoming him._

_"Ari-arigatou, Sasu-nii." he said. Sasuke gave him a smile and then bent to kiss the bandages, "I promise it won't hurt soon, okay?" Naruto blushed slightly, knowing what was coming next. Sasuke helped him up and as soon as the blonde was on his feet, Sasuke kissed him softly._

_Naruto felt the fluttering of his stomach begin and he willed himself to calm down. The older boy pulled back and gently took Naruto's hand within his own, "Ne, let's go home." Naruto nodded and blushed even more, looking down at the ground, trusting Sasuke to lead them safely home._

_Once home, he wandered around until he walked into Itachi's room. The teen was on his bed, leaning against the wall, a scroll in his lap. He looked up and smiled, rolling up the scroll. He patted the space next to him and Naruto moved closer._

_Itachi attacked the boy's sides and soon Naruto was squealing and squirming to get away from Itachi's tickle attack. He let out a sigh when Itachi finally stopped. The teen leaned his head back and asked, "So, what's up?"_

_Naruto sat up straight and asked, "Sasu-nii…he, well…"_

_"Ah, so you're finally hitting that stage in life."_

_Naruto blushed slightly while Itachi just smiled. With a sigh he continued, "I wish my brother were like you. He probably does not even realize what kind of effect he has on you."_

_The young blonde replied quietly, "Like, what you have with Shisui?" Itachi coughed indiscreetly into his hand, but gave a slight nod, "Yes, that's right. You're perceptive. My Otouto is just so dense, not to mention stubborn."_

_Naruto smiled broadly, "So maybe you can help me…how come I feel this way?" Itachi shook his head and replied, "That is for you to discover on your own. I can't tell you what you're feeling."_

_Naruto's face fell slightly and Itachi ruffled his hair, "say, Naruto?" The young blonde looked up at Itachi. The teen's hand dropped and he looked at the floor, "Something…is going to happen soon." He folded his hands together and rested his chin on them. The young boy beside him was confused and so he tugged on Itachi's sleeve, "Like what?"_

_Itachi looked at him, "I'm…going to be going away for a while." Naruto's face fell, "What? Where? How long?" Itachi let out a sad laugh and pulled Naruto into a hug._

_"I'm going away. I can't tell you where. I don't know for how long." He pulled Naruto away and looked at him in the eye, "You can't tell anyone, not even Sasuke. It's one of those things he has to figure out for himself. He probably won't believe you anyway…Naruto, I would never hurt you or Sasuke. Just remember that, okay?"_

_Naruto felt tears welling up in his eyes, "Are you going to die Itachi-nii?" The teen's eyes softened and he pulled Naruto into his arms, "no, I'm not going to die. I promise you that." The blonde buried his face into Itachi's chest._

_"Promise me you won't tell a soul. When you realize I'm gone, don't tell anyone. And…when you realize I'm gone, don't trust me." Naruto pulled back to look at Itachi in confusion. The teen rubbed the tears from Naruto's cheeks._

_"You'll understand what I mean soon. Now, do you promise?" Naruto nodded, "Yakusoku Desu." He held out his pinky, and Itachi did the same, linking them together and shaking once._

_Naruto stood up, huge smile on his face and said, "I'm going to go find Sasu-nii." With that said, he bounced out of the room, leaving Itachi to study his scroll again._

_He crashed into Shisui in the hallway, which caused a lot of yelling and screaming. Shisui looked at Naruto and scolded, "you shouldn't be running in the halls! I gotta see Itachi!" Naruto glared up at him, "You were running too! I gotta see Sasu-nii!"_

_Shisui's expression softened and he laughed, "Okay, okay. I guess, to each his own." Naruto blushed a little at the comment. Itachi's voice drifted from the room, "Don't scare Naruto."_

_Shisui rubbed the back of his head and helped Naruto to stand, "Alright, gotta run!" He launched himself into Itachi's room with a girlish squeal of 'tachi-kun!' before Itachi let out a yell, "Either get off of me or lay off the sweets!!!"_

-----4098-----

Holy banazas, I've written a lot, this ish a new record for me: 4098 words. XD Crazy-Novelist looked at me like 'that's it?'. It's not my fault, I don't like making insanely long chapters…then it is my fault. Well, whatever. I dun care.

New section added! Review question reply:

Sweetdreamer: Sasuke and Naruto are and are not friends. Sasuke is having conflicted feelings about Naruto. And no, they're not still living together.

Boehangles: nope, Naruto is not still living at Sasuke's

Liar-just-a-liar: yes, Itachi is too cool to be devilish XD dun worry about him too much, he has an important part to play….wayyyyy later on XD

Berta-chan: sorry that you hate Sakura, but I'm not going to bash her...that badly...or that frequently... She's actually gonna be quite nice XD

Keele-cray: Sasuke has a complex. It's called stupidity.

Kaikouken: yes, kowaii, kawaii. Whichever way, it's still the same. There is no exact spelling for japanese words anyways. Just pronunciations.

Obdsure Omen: yes, I like pervy Sasuke too XD and in the fourth chapter, Naruto thinks that Sasuke hates him, not the other way XD

Ryou-la-lune: my Japanese to English dictionary XD

Taryn: yes. It's called a time skip. But don't worry, we'll get back to it…eventually

Shay072002: not really. Sasuke is conflicted.

fuzzySeduction: you caught me XD but whatever XD

The Daxinator: yes and no. maybe. I'm adding an extra character and hopefully Naruto will have another flashback to explain it in the next chapter…hopefully. XD

I hope than explained your questions . I would also like to say, that reviews that just say 'update asap' are a little disheartening. They make me all worried, and then I'm thinking, why the heck would I want to update to a person like that. So, some of you other guys are getting screwed over by the people who say that. Cuz when someone tell me to do something…I don't do it. Ask crazy novelist-san. She knows. But other than that, I'm loving the reader response -glomps all of you-

It's time to Learn Japanese with Lady MacFluff!!!

(1) Onegai means 'please'

(2) Tachigaru means 'stand/get up'

(3) Shimatta means 'damn/shit'

(4) Usotsuki means 'liar'

(5) Kami-sama means 'god'

(6) Chotto means 'just' as in 'just a little' or 'just a minute'

Eck, I'm getting shorter on new Japanese words. I must go buy a bigger dictionary…eventually XD


	6. Chapter 6 : Believe it!

Chapter 6: Believe it!!

I don't own Naruto

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She was just a little upset. Just a little. Maybe. Okay, she was down right ready to hang herself from her little balcony. Was she never going to be good enough to keep up with them, to stand up proudly with them, to be let in to their two-man circle?

Naruto just knew so much about Sasuke. The same went the other way. She was just feeling depressed when Naruto bounced up to them one day in the same way he always did. Sasuke would have just ignored him, but he didn't. He held out a small package and wished him a happy twelfth birthday.

She saw how Naruto's eyes had lit up. She saw that small blush that Naruto tried so hard to suppress. She saw that he was in love. She didn't know when Sasuke's birthday was. She didn't know what food he liked. She didn't know how to act around him and not make him angry.

She was enlightened to that fact while trying to sleep in the wave country. She spent the whole night tossing and turning, trying to get the image of Naruto out of her head. He was just so sad. It hurt her so much to see him in that much pain when he thought Sasuke was dead. Then, Sasuke came back, and Naruto was just so happy. Sakura saw it so clear in his eyes, just how much Naruto loved the Uchiha.

She wasn't disgusted with Naruto. She was happy that he was in love. Anyone in love deserved it, even Naruto. True, she didn't like the younger teen much for being loud-mouthed and annoying, but anyone in love couldn't be bad.

She had gone out that evening to Naruto's house, wishing him a happy birthday and got him some dinner from the store. She had spent time with him, had talked to him, and realized that he loved Sasuke more than she did. She felt her competitive edge, but suppressed it within her. Naruto wasn't all that bad.

Those were not the reasons she was upset now. The reason for her turmoil was a small piece of paper, her entrance to the Chuunin exam, sitting in her lap. She wanted to advance. She wanted to reach them. She wanted to be just as good. But she was afraid.

Afraid that she would fail, all because she was a girl. Because of being a girl, she was weak. She was also ruled by her emotions. She was slower than them. The only advantage she had was her chakra control, but her teammates had so much more stamina and chakra. In order to keep up with them, she had to control every single drop of chakra in her body.

Sasuke's voice rang out to her, and she was surprised. Leaning back, she looked over the edge of her balcony, 'strange…I didn't feel his chakra signature…' Immediately she knew what was going on.

Less than half an hour later, she was back to brooding in her room, the task of getting rid of her Sasuke-imposter having been gotten over with. She finally threw her hands up, "What the hell is brooding going to do?! I want to be with Sasuke-kun, not become him!" She was out the door in seconds, her mind having been made up.

'I'm not going to just stand behind them; I'm going to stand beside them.' She told herself when the two boys came into her view. She gave them both a smile, to which the boys were a little surprised.

"Let's go get this over with." She said, confidently. Naruto gave a nod and instantly began to prattle off like he usually did.

He was oddly quiet once they had gotten into the room. He was also angry that he was easily overlooked, only a shadow to Sasuke. He was going to show them that he was tough. He would show them all.

Of course you will, the voice encouraged. Naruto frowned slightly but replied, 'quiet, you.' He turned back to the conversation, feeling a little bit jealous of the way Ino was hanging all over Sasuke. He suppressed it, when the voice spoke again; it's unhealthy to suppress those feeling you have, kitling. Naruto could barely hold back the growl forming in the back of his throat, 'I said, shut it.'

Technically you said 'quiet', the voice said. It was accompanied by a dark yet amused laugh. Naruto pushed it to the back of his mind but the voice persisted, Have you not figured it out yet?

'That I'm going crazy? Yes, I know that much.' The voice boomed out in laughter again before becoming silent, leaving Naruto to pay attention to the conversation. He only caught the end of it before he was handed a piece of paper with a number on it. He mindlessly walked to his seat, noticing that Sasuke was following. He also happened to notice that by sheer luck, they had been seated next to each other.

It was at moments like these that Naruto wished that he would have a klutz attack, trip and fall, and end up in the hospital. Oh no, Sasuke caught his elbow mere second before he had even started tripping. Naruto inwardly cursed at the Uchiha and sat down in his seat.

It was a little awkward, sitting next to Sasuke in a classroom environment. He hadn't done that in years. Sasuke looked at him from the corner of his eye and asked, "Nervous, Usuratonkachi?" Naruto raised a brow in confusion and Sasuke sighed, "You're not good at written tests, right?"

Naruto began to panic. He was getting even more nervous with every rule that the person in the front of the class said. Sasuke let out a small smile, 'same old Naruto.' He shook his head when Naruto's fingers began drumming on the seat. Sasuke sighed and very, very discreetly, placed his hand on top of Naruto's.

The blonde froze. Sakura behind them noticed him tense up significantly. She shook her head, 'is he nervous about the test, or about the person sitting next to him?' Naruto was pretty sure he was tense because of the person sitting next to him. Sasuke looked at him from the corner of his eye before he said, "Calm down. You won't be able to take a test if you're tense."

Naruto gulped, feeling the blush coming to his face and getting butterflies in his stomach. Sasuke let his thumb ghost over Naruto's knuckles and the blonde no longer could suppress the blush. He looked down, seeing how Sasuke's pale hand contrasted with his own.

'What the hell is he doing?' Naruto asked himself. The voice came back again, I think that means he likes you, stupid. Naruto flinched and pulled his hand away. Sasuke turned his head to look at Naruto, but the blonde was staring intently at his desk. His face fell a little and he turned back to looking at the front of the classroom.

"What do you care if I'm tense or not?" He said. Sasuke didn't respond to that. In fact, Sasuke was quite angry that the blonde had pulled away so hastily. His brow creased slightly and he thought, 'He was the one who started it. He kissed me.' Sasuke flipped over his paper when the Chuunin up front told him to do so. 'I'm trying to be friends with him…like it was before, but he's all…arg, forget it! I'm going to forget about this baka sitting next to me and take my test!'

He picked up his pencil and twirled it in his hands, 'What do I even care?' Scanning the first test question, all thoughts about Naruto were put aside as he thought, 'Holy shit.' Then his thoughts returned with, 'Naruto can't figure this out.'

Naruto thought the same thing. He slumped in his seat after scanning the test five times. He dropped his pencil, muttered, "Kuso," and put his head on his desk. Hell if he was going to fail this, then he might as well just do something productive…like catching up on sleep.

He was nudged awake by Sasuke when the Chuunin, Ibiki, began speaking again, "Alright listen up. I'm going to give you the last question, but there is a final rule." There were a couple of groans from the people who had not been caught cheating yet. The Chuunin's face darkened and he said, "If you are to take this question, and fail, you will remain a genin forever. If you choose to leave, you can re-take the exam in six months."

Sasuke felt Naruto tense up besides him. He wanted to turn and tell him what the test was really about, but he couldn't, unless he wanted to be kicked out of the testing area. He was sure he was caught cheating at least once, when one of the Chuunin on the side saw his Sharingan.

Slowly, people began leaving, and with each person that left, Sakura softly pleaded that telepathy did work, 'Raise your hand, we can always take it next time…'

Her eyes widened when Naruto's hand began to rise. She smiled slightly. It was okay for Naruto to be afraid. She put down her pencil, but nearly jumped five feet in the air when his hand slammed on the desk.

"I'm not going to give up!" He said, "I don't care if I can't ever become a Chuunin! I'll find a way and I'll become the greatest Hokage, ever, datte bayo!!" Sasuke rolled his eyes and wanted to hide behind the high collar on his shirt. It was the one phrase he hated. 'datte bayo' was the bane of his existence. Naruto said the accursed tag-on to almost every sentence and Sasuke was sure he did it just to annoy the shit out of him.

Yes, in fact Sasuke was positive that the blonde did it to annoy him. He only used the darned thing-yes 'thing'- when Sasuke was around anyways. He turned to Sasuke, a certain look on his face that simple screamed, 'I said it and you can't do anything about it!' Oh yes, Naruto knew how much the Uchiha hated the tag-on to his speech.

Naruto smirked as he sat back in his chair. The tension in the room slipped away. Sasuke didn't know if it was because of Naruto's actual speech or his speech impediment. He almost laughed aloud at his own thoughts. Speech impediment was the only way to describe 'datte bayo'

"You pass!"

Sasuke snapped back to reality from his internal musings, wondering what the heck was going on. Apparently, many people thought the same. Ibiki gave a smile, then gave explanations. Sasuke caught Naruto in his own lie when Naruto began prattling off how he had known all along what was going on.

Everyone on the room jumped nearly three feet in the air when the next examiner showed up. There was only one word that everyone in the room could adequately describe her as: insane.

Once dismissed to go to the next test, mostly everyone jumped out of their seats and bolted for the door like a bat straight out of hell. There were only a few who chose to dawdle about for a couple of minutes before Ibiki told them to leave.

Team seven gave a collective groan once the words 'survival training' left Anko's mouth. She then began explaining the rules and even handed out a piece of paper for them to sign. Naruto had stopped listening not even ten seconds into her speech.

Sasuke held up a hand, hiding the smile and suppressing the laugh when Naruto began wriggling around and imitating her in what he supposed was a girly voice. Sakura looked horrified, "Are you insane? That woman looks like she could kill you by simply looking at you!" She whispered. Naruto let out a small laugh but did not cease his actions.

A kunai flew out at him and he froze, feeling the slight stick on his cheek, followed by the warmth of his blood slowly sliding down his face. He turned slightly and just stared. She was right behind him, muttered something about spilling the red blood she loved so much before she turned his head to get the drop of blood onto her finger.

She had another kunai ready for the person who sprang up behind her, "It's not wise to stand behind me like that." She commented. Naruto's eyes widened, then he searched out for Sasuke. They locked eyes and shared a message, 'The hell?! That chick is using her tongue!!'

"Just returning your Kunai." Said the girl. Anko took it from her and gave her thanks. She left Naruto alone and Sakura and Sasuke joined him.

"D-daijobu?" Sakura asked. Naruto gave a nod but then stuck his tongue out as far as it would go, looking silly. Sasuke shook his head, "You might as well stop, you can't get your tongue to do that…"

Naruto then turned to him and stuck his tongue out, "Nani? Why not? I can if I exercise my tongue!" He turned, not even realizing what he just said until Sakura started giggling and Sasuke commented, "And how would you go about doing that?"

Naruto froze, red rushing into his face. They dimly noted that they were dismissed to sign their papers. Sakura then commented, "Honto, Naruto. Anata wa sugei baka." Sasuke agreed, much to her surprise, and said, "Yeah, he'd need a partner for that."

Naruto puffed out his cheeks and pouted, "That's not fair, you're double teaming me. We're suppose to be a team." With a smirk he added, "and as a team, don't we train together?"

The other two froze and after staring for a while, the three of them walked off in random directions.

-----

"Konohamaru?" Naruto rolled his eyes when the three academy students tried sneaking around in a rectangle cardboard box disguised as a rock. His eye brow twitched when the thing suddenly exploded and three coughing kids appeared before him.

"Naruto-niichan!" Konohamaru exclaimed, "I am impressed that you have detected my presence, but as to be expected for the man I call my rival!" Sakura walked over to them with a sigh, "What are you going off about now?"

Moegi perked up and said. "Well, we were assigned to do a report for the school paper, so we decided to interview the Chuunin exam participants." Konohamaru glanced at her and softly muttered, " 'We decided'? You decided…"

She gave him a glare that clearly said, 'shut your trap or I'll shut it for you.' Naruto let a smile slip, "So, you want to interview me?" The three gave a nod, and the final child, Udon, spoke up, "We'd like to interview your teammates too!"

Sakura smiled and said, "I'll go get Sasuke."

"I'm right here."

Sakura jumped nearly three feet in the air and almost turned to yell at the raven. She instead opted to turn around and say, "O-oh, Sasuke-kun. You frightened me."

Naruto grinned, "Just admit it, Sasuke scared the crap out of you." Sakura gave a shaky laugh and rubbed the back of her head, closing her eyes and sticking out her tongue slightly in embarrassment. Inwardly, she wanted to maim the blonde.

"So, what's it like being in the Chuunin exams?!" Konohamaru exclaimed, getting his small notepad out. Naruto put a finger to his chin and began, "Really…not all that bad so far."

Sasuke scoffed, "Yeah right." Sakura grinned, "Naruto, you were totally stressing over the last test." Naruto blushed slightly and looked away, "S-sakura-chan…I'm not a good test-taker…"

"Sakura-san." Moegi began, "What about you, what do you think of it?" Sakura sighed and said, "It is pretty hard, I'll admit. I have a feeling it's going to get harder." Moegi then asked, "How did you pass the first test? What was it?"

Naruto jumped in, recovered, "We used our mad ninja skills!" Udon jotted something down on his pad and asked, "Can you tell us about yourselves?" Sakura and Naruto began prattling off about their lives and Sasuke would occasionally join in with a word or two of his own. A couple of minutes later found Konohamaru lost in thought, before the little light bulb went on and he was struck with an idea.

Konohamaru gave a smirk and said, "Naruto, in your opinion…" Naruto sensed the mischief in the boy's voice and took a step back.

"Yes…?"

"Who's the hottest participant?" Naruto shrugged and then he looked around, "You want my expert opinion? For a school survey.?" Konohamaru grinned, "Just asking for fun."

Sakura then was struck by an idea, "Yeah, who would be the hottest guy…" She then looked around, "What do you think?"

Naruto blushed, "what are you implying?" He asked. She gave him a grin, but Sasuke spoke up, "That you're either batting for both teams, or the wrong one." Naruto blushed, and the younger kids looked around confused.

"Who's the hottest of all the people, regardless of gender." Sakura asked. Konohamaru finally understood and exclaimed, "Naruto-niichan! You're not going to answer her question!?"

The blond merely looked around. His eyes lightened up and he said, "Red-head at three o'clock." Sakura turned and then gave a smile, "You picked a guy." He gave a shrug, "There aren't many girls." He felt as if he was going to regret it, but then again, he willingly took the bait.

"I don't like Ino much. The lady from before creeps me out with that tongue. Hinata is okay, but she's not hot. The girl next to the red-head looks pretty hot, but I'd have to say, she's not hotter than the other guys. She's kinda manly." Naruto explained.

"So…"Konohamaru began, "Why the red-head?"

"Gaara." Sasuke corrected. Naruto shrugged. Konohamaru's face fell, "That guy was with that one jerk, Kakuri?"

"Kankuro." Sakura corrected.

"He has a sense of danger about him. And, have you ever seen someone with eyes like that? He doesn't have that bad of a body either." Then he added, "Just saying though. I'm no expert."

"Did you include us?" Sakura asked, motioning to herself and Sasuke. Naruto's eyes widened slightly and he took a step back, "S-Sakura, are you asking me to check out my own teammates!?" His eyes looked right through her to stare at Sasuke.

In his opinion, Sasuke was the hottest. Naruto had a feeling that Sakura knew, but he was too busy trying to get himself out from the hole he was digging. She then said, "What do you think of us?"

"W-well…" Naruto said, "Sakura-chan, please don't get mad…" She smiled, "Why would I?"

"Um, well…Sakura-chan…you have a really pretty eyes and hair, but your body is a little lacking….that's to be expected though- I mean, you're really young…" Inside, she was fuming, but she let him continue, "You do dress better than the others, and since I know you, I know you're smart, but I'm sorry, you don't really measure up on the hotness scale." He braced himself for the hit, but what she said was even worse.

"And what about Sasuke?"

Blood rushed to his face and he said, "Stop trying to make me out like I'm gay, Sakura!" She smiled again, "Oho, but I have to have a little revenge for that comment. Now tell me, what do you think of Sasuke?"

Konohamaru and his friends were giggling at how Naruto was just digging himself into the hole. Finally Naruto looked away and muttered, "Sasuke-san has a fan-club, what do you think?"

Sasuke crossed his arms and leaned against a random wall, pretending to not be interested with the conversation, but in reality listening intently. He also didn't miss the add-on Naruto put to his name.

"…Please explain."

Naruto groaned, "Okay, fine. You want to hear it? I think Sasuke would measure up on the hotness scale!"

"Hotter than Gaara?"

Naruto blushed and looked away. No one missed the angry glare he had on his face when he said, "Urusai." He turned sharply and walked off in a random direction, thinking to himself, 'What have I done now…I shouldn't have taken the bait."

"Sakura." Sasuke said. She turned to him and her smile fell, "h-hai? Nani?"

"Leave him alone. That wasn't very nice, backing him into a corner like that." He then glared at the three kids, "You should interview other people."

The three scuttled away to pester other random people, avoiding the dangerous and mean-looking ones.

The three didn't talk to each other after that episode, even as they were staring down the ominous gate of the forest. Sakura looked over at Naruto and then softly said, "N-naruto?"

"ah…?" He replied, still keeping his eyes glued onto the floor. Sakura gulped and then said, "G-gomen, I shouldn't have cornered you like that…I just, I guess I did get a little upset at being so easily overlooked…"

"If." Naruto began, "If you hadn't have said anything, then I would have answered Konohamaru's question easily. You are better looking that the rest of the girls. At least I think so." There was a slight blush on his cheeks from embarrassment.

Sasuke though, was slowly being crushed, 'he likes her. He likes her…why do I care?' he shook his head, "It's almost time." He butted in. Sakura than turned to him and said, "I'm sorry too, Sasuke, for getting you involved. Besides, Naruto is right…You do have a fan-club!"

Sasuke scoffed, "I'm all too aware." Sakura then turned back to Naruto, "But seriously…are you…" She lowered her voice and asked, "…gay?"

Naruto glanced at Sasuke and that second stretched into an eternity. He saw Sasuke's face. Sasuke didn't care. He would always protect him yes, but not out of attachment. His protection was just duty.

Naruto let out a laugh and then said, "I was a little upset when I left…I hope I hadn't given you the wrong impression that I was…" He rubbed the back of his head and lied through his teeth, "No, rest assured, I'm not gay. You still have a chance with me."

That earned him a good hit to the back of the head, but all through the commotion between Sakura and Naruto, they missed the flicker of emotion that passed along Sasuke's features: Disappointment.

The sad thing was that Sasuke didn't even realize what he felt.

-----3732-----

Uwahhh….where is my Japanese going? -sobs- two chappies on one day. I hope you enjoy XD

Learn Japanese with the MacFluff Yaoi Queen!!! O.o that rhymed…sorta

(1) Baka - 'idiot' or 'stupid'

(2) Kuso - 'damn' or 'shit'

(3) Datte bayo - it's not even a word. It's Naruto gibberish

(4) Anata wa sugei baka - You're an amazing/big idiot

(5) -Niichan - another tag-on for 'brother' or someone who is like your brother

(6) Urusai - 'Shut up'


	7. Chapter 7 : Fire Element

Chapter 7: Fire Element

I don't own Naruto

-----

Not even five minutes had passed and Naruto was already fed up with the forest and everything inside of it. Hours later found him wanting to kill one giant snake. He crossed his arms and thought about how the heck he was supposed to get out of the damn snake.

'Someone is going to die for this.' He put a hand to cover his nose, 'It stinks in here.' Finally he made his favorite seal. Well second favorite.

"_Kage Bushin no Jutsu_!" He yelled. He felt bodies appearing besides him and soon there was a sick noise of slimy chunks of snake falling everywhere.

"Stupid forest with stupid snakes." He grumbled, wiping the slime from his face. About a hundred other clones were doing the same thing until they disappeared into thin air. Naruto shook his head, getting snake guts everywhere.

"Dammit, this sucks." He sighed and then looked around, "Where the hell is everyone?!" He yelled. Getting no response, he ran in a random direction.

_'Silly kitling…'_ Naruto scrunched his nose, 'Not another bout of insanity….' There was a growl forming in the back of his mind, _'You're treading on thin ice, kitling. I will not be mistaken for your insanity again. Use your head for once.'_

'I know who you are.' Naruto said softly, 'Just play along for a bit. Indulge me to the point where I believe that I'm not a monster.' He laid a hand over his stomach when he stopped on a tree branch.

_'There is a difference between being a monster, and having one inside of you. For one,'_ the fox began, _'you are not hunted down day and night, forced to see your own kin slaughtered, all towards the single goal of being used as a tool of war.'_

Naruto bowed his head, 'I…I'm sorry.'

_'Kitling, you have the purest life compared to mine.'_ he began again, _'I was forced to become a murderer to stay alive, gained a title I had never wanted, then that…incident…but now is not the time for reminiscing. Use your senses to find them. I'm sure you can at least be able to recognize the Uchiha by scent alone.'_ Naruto scrunched up his nose and said aloud, "Of course I can. Even after all these years…I know his scent…"

_'Stupid love struck human.'_ The fox growled. Naruto shook his head and then took off, 'why are you helping me? Aren't you supposed to be a blood thirsty beast?' There was a pause before the fox began, _'I was never a monster. Humans made me a monster. The more I learned about humanity…the more I wanted to hide away and wish there was a different land I could retire to…'_

_'But humanity spread and I had no place to go.'_ Naruto muttered another apology but the fox said, _'I have found a safe haven in you, kitling…but you have to pay a heavy price…'_

Naruto looked down and picked up on Sasuke's scent. He gave a small inward smile, 'He doesn't realize just how much he smells like…'

_'The other Uchiha?'_ The fox asked. Naruto nodded but kept going, following where the teen might have gone. He felt the fox inside him begin to think and then he said, _'There are many confusing things in this life, in your life. That boy…might just be one of the top ten.'_ Naruto nodded again, 'Whatever he did, he did for me and Sasuke.'

He spotted the Uchiha being attacked by the weird girl with the large tongue, 'I just have to believe in Itachi-nii….' He jumped in, helping Sasuke out. Then he turned and with a smile said, "Sorry, I forgot the password."

Sakura smiled widely, relived that the other teen wasn't dead. Then the voice of the girl reached his ears, "Well, you managed to escape my snake, Naruto?" Naruto's eyes narrowed and he glared, "That was yours? Sorry to say, it's dead."

The girl didn't even look like she cared. She gave a smile and then turned to Sasuke again. More words were exchanged until Sasuke held out his scroll, "Here, take it. Take it and leave us alone."

The girl began laughing but before she could even get a word in, Naruto reached to where Sasuke was and struck him across the face, hard. Sasuke looked shocked and then angry, "What are you doing, dumbass?"

Naruto glared at him, "You can look like him…you can smell like him…but there is no way that..." He paused and chose his words carefully.

He has almost said: there is no way that I like a coward like you. He bit back a growl and began again, "There is no way that you are Sasuke. There is no way that this coward is you!" Naruto looked at the ground, clenching his fist so tight that his knuckles were white.

Sasuke continued to glare, "Don't you see this is the only way we'll get out of this alive?" Naruto shook his head, "Do you really think that a person this powerful…wouldn't have just taken the scroll already…" Naruto turned to the girl, "Her intent…is to kill us."

The girl laughed, "Wow, you are very perceptive," She stopped laughing and bowed her head to glare at them from under her eyelashes, "You're right." A smile adorned her face as she said, "I had no intention of letting you leave here alive." Sakura tensed, 'such murderous intent…oh my god…she's really going to...' she gulped and felt herself weakening, 'we're going to…' She began to shake.

Sasuke noticed her start to shake and he felt it start in his own body, 'Why? Why am I so scared?'

_Run and cling to life…_

Sasuke eyes widened and he didn't even realize that Naruto had started fighting until Sakura screamed his name. He looked up just in time to see the huge snake coming towards him, but his legs would not move. He closed his eyes and heard the awful noise of metal digging into flesh.

His eyes opened and he saw Naruto, holding back the giant snake, a kunai in each hand. His voice started out as a whisper, "Are you okay…" Sasuke swallowed the lump that had started to form in his throat.

Naruto looked up. His eyes were a demon red color and his pupils had become slits. The soft whisker marks on each cheek became darker and wider, engraved deeper into Naruto's skin, "_Bibiri-kun_?"

That was when Sasuke started shaking. He wasn't shaking from the fear of dying. He was shaking from the power that radiated off of Naruto. He could feel the invisible thread of Naruto's chakra press against his skin. Goosebumps appeared on his skin and he opened his mouth to say something.

His eyes widened as a large pink thing, which he later realized was the girl's tongue, wrapped around the blonde and pulled him up. Naruto's eyes widened and he looked at her and then back to Sasuke desperately. He reached out his hands, hoping that Sasuke would help him.

But Sasuke didn't even budge. Naruto closed his eyes, rage coming over him. He glared at the girl who held him captive. "Yo, let me go!" Naruto kicked and screamed at the girl, "This is sooo gross!!" He felt her tongue push his jacket and shirt up and he yelled, "Hey, hey! What the hell are you doing!? Stop that!!"

She narrowed her eyes as if to tell him to 'shut up' but Naruto said, "No, I will not shut up, you freak! Let me go!"

What did shut him up was the seal she placed on his stomach. His eyes widened and he felt the pull of his chakra as it began to spin in unusual directions. His eyes dropped and he thought, 'what did she do? I feel…funny…'

_'No! Naru...ing separ...seal will sto...rom communi...' _The fox's voice drifted in and out before Naruto could no longer hear the fox anymore. He closed his eyes and saw inside himself. There were doors, solid doors, closing over the bars that kept the fox imprisoned. They closed over the bars and Naruto ran to them, trying to get rid of them. He was instead thrown back to land in the murky waters of his mind.

She tossed him aside like a rag doll and Sakura screamed, "Sasuke!" in hopes that he would snap out of his trance and save the younger teen. When he didn't move, she pulled out a kunai and barely caught Naruto from falling by the back of his jacket, pinning him to a tree.

Sasuke looked from Naruto to the girl. His eyes narrowed and he felt anger building up. He openly glared at the girl and took a fighting stance. She raised a brow and looked at him, amused.

"Oh, are you going to fight me now?" She crouched down and then launched herself. Sasuke took a step back, catching her fist in his hand before he let his black orbs melt into a sea of red.

"Sharingan." He barely muttered before catching the other punch. She began wildly running circles around him, trying to confuse him.

Making a few hand seals, his voice echoed in the forest, "_Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu_!" The girl avoided his fire attacks and they went back to using mainly Taijutsu. Sakura smiled sadly as they fought, quickly realizing that Sasuke only snapped out of his stupefied trance until after Naruto was knocked unconscious.

She thought to herself, glancing at Naruto's still form, 'Sasuke really cares about Naruto…' She followed the two fighters until Sasuke had the girl tied to a tree with ninja wire. He made more hand seals and then yelled, "_Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu_!" Fire erupted from his mouth and traveled down the wire to burn the girl to a crisp.

Sakura jumped next to Sasuke, cheering, "All right, you did it!" Inner Sakura punched the air and yelled, _'Shannaro! I knew he could do it!'_ She gave him a smile, but he kept on glaring ahead. Her smile faded and she looked at the charred clone that the girl had made. The girl appeared from the ground not to far from where they were.

'Oh no,' Sakura thought, 'Sasuke's too worn out to fight another round.' She realized that the girl knew that too. She gave a wicked smile and began, "My name…" Her voice changed drastically from female to male as the disguise he wore melted from part of his face. Sasuke had only grazed him with that last attack.

"…is Orochimaru." Sakura felt a shudder crawl down her spine when the snake-like eye turned to glance at her. She took an involuntary step closer to Sasuke and pulled out her kunai, ready for Orochimaru to attack.

The man made a couple of seals before he said, "You, Uchiha Sasuke, interest me…" He made another round of seal before continuing, "Your body…that blood-line…just like his…" In the blink of an eye, his neck grew longer and his head stretched over to Sasuke, biting into his neck deeply.

"_Ten no Juin_!"

Sasuke let out a gasp of pain, feeling that foreign chakra invade his own and disrupt his own flow. Orochimaru's head went back to its place and he chuckled to himself. Sakura caught Sasuke as his knees gave out. She looked hopelessly around as Sasuke screamed in pain. She held him tighter as she waited for Orochimaru to attack again.

But it never came and ultimately, she was alone.

_"Itachi-nii." Sasuke crossed his arms and pouted, "You said you would go out with me and Naruto-nii today!"_

_The teen rubbed the back of his head and said, "Ah, Gomen, Otouto." He poked Sasuke's forehead, "Shisui came up with something at the last minute…"_

_"Itachi-kun!" Sasuke caught the look in Itachi's eye when a raven-haired girl bounced through the door: utter hate and annoyance. He quickly replaced it with a mask of indifference._

_"Shisui-chan says we have to get going soon." She gave a huge smile. Naruto bounced around the corner and said, "Kuru-onesan!" He hugged her legs and she gave a laugh._

_Sasuke crossed his arms and glared at the girl, "Don't think you can hog nii-san all day…Besides, you have a meeting to attend later today, so you have to come back home anyway!"_

_Naruto's eyes widened, "Nani ka? He's going out with Kuru-onesan and Shusui-nii?" Naruto then pouted like Sasuke did, "But Itachi-nii…you promised!! This is the third time this week..." Naruto's eyes began to water and he looked at the floor._

_Itachi pulled the blonde into his arms, giving him a hug, to which Sasuke protested, "Why does he get a hug!?" Itachi ignored the raven-haired boy and muttered to Naruto, "Don't forget what I said…" Naruto was left confused. Itachi gave a sad smile as he left for the door._

_"Sayonara, Naruto." He turned to Naruto and nodded before turning to Sasuke and doing the same, "Sasuke."_

_Kuru tapped her foot impatiently on the floor. She glared at Shisui as soon as he latched onto Itachi. Sasuke turned to Naruto and have a sigh, "I guess it can't be helped…kusottare ga..." He turned to Naruto and his eyes widened, "Naruto, Daijobu?"_

_Naruto looked to the ground and the tears he had in his eyes fell freely. Sasuke grabbed Naruto's shoulders and asked, "What's wrong? Naruto? Come on, you can tell me."_

_Naruto gave a weak smile and wiped his tears away, "Anata wa baka na mane o shite imasu (You're being silly)" He looked up at Sasuke and continued, "Really, it's nothing."_

_Sasuke furrowed his brow and then pulled Naruto into a hug, "Naruto…you're such a horrible liar…" He felt the boy tense slightly before he replied, "I'm not lying!" Naruto pulled away angry. He crossed his arms and turned away, pouting._

_Sasuke let out a small laugh before he said, "Come on. Let's practice together." Naruto then lit up like it was Christmas Eve, "Yeah, we can try that Jutsu your dad taught you!"_

_"I bet I'll figure it out before you!" Sasuke said, laughing and running to put on his shoes. Naruto scoffed at him, "Yeah right!"_

He scrunched up his nose and screwed his eyes shut. He didn't like the noise that the fight was making. He would rather sleep…wait. Fight? And he was sleeping? Something was wrong with this picture.

He didn't even think about what he did next, but he soon found himself fighting side-by-side with Sasuke. Naruto attacked first, giving Sasuke time to prepare his fire attack. The girl they fought growled and easily dodged Naruto's attack.

"_Katon: Goukyakuu no Jutsu_!" Naruto ducked down as the fire passed over his head. He made a few hand seals of his own and waited for the girl to jump out of the way for the obvious attack.

She glared at Sasuke once she had launched herself into the air and didn't see Naruto below her. He inhaled deeply and yelled, "_Katon: Goukyakuu no Jutsu_!" She screamed as the attack hit and she retreated as far back as possible.

Naruto coughed a little, but the three enemies decided to retreat at that moment. All the people that were there began talking and figuring things out. He saw Neji and Tenten gather up Lee before they left. Ino was arguing with Sakura over one thing or another and Shikamaru and Chouji were just waiting for her to be finished. He gave a small smile, seeing them all act so casual.

He furrowed a brow and then turned to Sasuke, "How did I get from the other fight to this one?"

Sasuke shrugged, "You were knocked unconscious. Then I was knocked unconscious. Orochimaru left after that."

"She was so weird." Naruto said coughing again. He cleared his throat and Sasuke said, "He was in disguise."

Naruto coughed into his hand and felt a warm liquid on it. He pulled his hand away and his eyes widened at the blood. He coughed again, spitting up more blood until someone yelled his name. He fell forward but he never hit the ground.

The last thing he felt before he fell unconscious again was the warmth of a body holding him close, and Sasuke's scent overwhelming his nose.

_"Itachi-nii?"_

_They hadn't talked to Itachi in a couple of days, so when Naruto approached the teen, he did so with caution. He couldn't place his finger on it, but something was different about Itachi. Something rang false._

_Naruto stood with his hands folded behind his back, "May I come in?"_

_Itachi looked up from his scroll and gave a nod. Naruto quickly scrambled onto the bed with a smile on his face. He was starting to piece together what Itachi had told him before._

_"Can we hang out with Kuru-onesan and Shisui-nii?" Naruto asked. Itachi looked up from his scroll, "I'm busy, Naruto. Sorry, but I can't."_

_Naruto's eyes dropped and then he decided he might as well follow through with the plan he had come up with. "Itachi-nii…" He crawled into the older teen's lap and wrapped his arms around his torso, "How come you never keep your promises to me or Sasu-nii?"_

_Itachi gave a sigh and put his scroll to the side before embracing Naruto, "I already said I was sorry. I'll make it up to you."_

_That was when Naruto decided to strike. He reached up and firmly planted his lips to Itachi's. The older teen didn't move until Naruto pulled away and said, "S'okay, you just did!"_

_With that said he bounced out of the room. Once he was far away enough he clamped a hand over his mouth and let out a silent scream all the while thinking, 'That was not Itachi-nii!! Itachi-nii would have never let me do that because of Shisui!"_

_"What are you doing?" Naruto let out a girly scream and launched himself three feet into the air. He fell onto his behind then rubbed the back of his head, "ah-hahaha…Sasu-nii, I didn't see you there…"_

_Sasuke raised his eyebrow, amused, "Do you want to go by the lake today and practice your fire Jutsu? Since you're not a fire type, I know it's much harder for you."_

_Naruto grinned and touched the bandages on Sasuke face, "Well, at least I'm not getting burned like you are." Sasuke glared slightly before turning and walking away, Naruto hot on his heels._

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Naruto looked up at Sasuke and gave a small smile, "Just practicing…"

Sasuke's brow furrowed and he said, "Don't push yourself. We don't know what's wrong with you and I don't want to have to carry your sorry, not to mention unconscious, ass out of here after we fail this damn exam."

Naruto gave a stupid grin and then sat down, tired. As soon as he had gotten up, he began practicing his fire Jutsu over the small river. Sasuke gave a sigh and sat next to Naruto.

"Baka…you're burned." Sasuke reached into his pouch and pulled out a small bottle. He gathered a bit of the ointment onto his fingers and said, "This might sting."

"Huh? Ow-Sasuke, I can put that on-ow-that hurts! I can put it on myself! You're not my-ow-mom!" Sasuke ignored the blonde and with his free hand, he firmly grabbed Naruto's chin. The blonde gave up protesting and let Sasuke fingers glide over the corners of his mouth. Then those fingers ghosted over his lips before applying more of the ointment onto Naruto's chin.

Sasuke then pressed a couple of bandages to the corner's of Naruto's mouth and said, "There all done." Naruto grinned, "What no kiss for my boo-boo?"

Sasuke glared at him before saying, "I'm getting a de ja vou. I remember one certain idiot, who caught his finger in a window, asking me the same thing."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "I was just kidding. Both times. I didn't know you were going to do it the first time."

Sasuke glared at him heartily before replying, "And you know what I'm capable of, yet you still do the same stupid shit, over and over again." The blonde let a wide smile adorn his face before wincing, "Oh, well I'd better get to bed."

Sasuke nodded and followed the teen back to where Sakura slept soundly. Naruto got comfortable in his sleeping bag before he said, "Night, Sasuke."

_Aisubeki ga… _

_Sasuke grabbed his shoulders and crushed their lips together. Naruto winced because of the pain, but it seemed to go away with each second that passed as they kissed._

_Sasuke's tongue brushed against Naruto's bottom lip, asking for entrance into the cavern beyond. He granted it and soon had his hands tangled in Sasuke's hair, wanting, needing to feel more of the Uchiha. As Sasuke's tongue explored the cavern of Naruto's mouth, his hands began to explore other parts of Naruto's body…_

"Oi! Get up already!"

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he let out a groan, "This is not happening…" Sasuke looked over and then grinned, "You were having a nice dream I gather." Sakura blushed and quickly ran to do something else. Something gave a hint to the other two that she wanted to have no part in this conversation.

Naruto blushed beet red and then picked up a rock throwing it over at Sasuke's direction, "Stop looking you perv!" Sasuke just laughed and went to help Sakura do whatever she was doing.

'Okay,' Naruto began, 'I'm going to get up and act like I didn't just dream about Sasuke! But first, I'm taking care of this problem.' With that thought, he ran into a random part of the forest.

-----3606-----

And thats a wrap! -wipes brow- Thank you all so much for your reviews!! -hugs everyone- I will not let what anyone tells me get me down! so i'll continue!! -jumps around- thank you all again!!

I'm going to give you a little background information on Kuru-chan. She is not a complete Uchiha. Her family has been in and out of the clan for many generations and because of that, they don't really know which one of them even has the capability to use Sharingan. She looks like all the other Uchihas though. She's friends with Itachi and Shisui. She can sometimes be a little crazy. She also really likes Itachi a hell of a lot more than she likes Shisui. If anything she want to pound Shusui into the next world because he allegedly stole her man...but she'll live.

So that's all about Uchiha Kuru. oh, and her generation is part of the Uchiha clan, seeing as her mother married back into it. I know sometimes putting in a new character can be quite gay, but i'm only putting her in, no one else. She's the loop hole...so i'm going to shut up now before i spoil plot XD

Review reply:

I've gotten way too many reviews to reply to them all, but if you put a question in your review, i'll answer it to best of my ability..without spoiling too much plot. I love you all!!! -glomps-

Now, lets learn Japanese with Lady MacFluff!!

(1) Kage Bushin no Jutsu - Shadow Clone Technique

(2) Bibiri-kun - Scaredy cat

(3) Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu - Fire Element: Grand Fireball Technique

(4) Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu - Fire Element: Dragon Fire Technique

(5) Shannaro - Again, more of the gibberish, except this time, it's Sakura-gibberish

(6) Ten no Juin - Cursed Seal of Heaven

(7) onesan - is used to say big sister, but to a girl who's not related to you by blood.

(8) ka - is used to turn a sentence into a question. Thank you Kuso-baba for that tidbit of info -waves-

(9) ga - is used for emphasis toward the subject. thank you again Kuso-baba!

(10) Sayonara - good bye

(11) Anata wa baka na mane o shite imasu - You're being silly. I translated it up there so you wouldn't have to scroll down. This sentence, i got directly from the dicionary i use...so i'm pretty sure it's right...

(12) kusottare ga - asshole (see, ga is used for emphasis). yes, Sasuke is cursing out his own brother. He's been listening to Kiba too much. Kiba is a bad influence XD

(13) Otouto - Little Brother


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